Drought Information Statement for 
SE SD, SW MN, NW IA, Far NE Neb 
Valid August 13, 2026
Issued By: WFO Sioux Falls, SD
Contact Information: w-fsd.webmaster@noaa.gov
This product will be updated as conditions warrant.  
Please see all currently available products at https://drought.gov/drought-information-statements.
Please visit https://www.weather.gov/fsd/DroughtInformationStatement for previous statements. 
Please visit https://www.drought.gov/drought-status-updates for regional drought status updates.
LACK OF WIDESPREAD CONSISTENT RAINFALL DRIVES DROUGHT EXPANSION INTO LATE SUMMER


LONG RANGE OUTLOOKS FAVOR DROUGHT CONDITIONS PERSISTING OR EXPANDING THROUGH END OF GROWING SEASON
1

Latest U.S. Drought Monitor
Link to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor for SE South Dakota, SW Minnesota, NW Iowa, far NE Nebraska
…Widespread Moderate to Severe Drought Conditions Persist…

Drought Intensity and Extent

D3 (Extreme Drought): Portions of northern Nebraska

D2 (Severe Drought): Portions of southeast South Dakota, southwest Minnesota and northwest Iowa.

D1 (Moderate Drought): Southwest Minnesota into remaining areas of southeast South Dakota and portions of northwest Iowa.

D0 (Abnormally Dry): Remaining areas not in more substantial drought coverage across northwest Iowa and southwest Minnesota. 

Precipitation Departure From Normal
Precipitation Departure From Normal
Water Year (Since Oct 1st)
Precipitation Departure From Normal
Month to Date
August Precip Departure From Normal
Year-to-Date Departure From Normal
Huron
-1.12”
-2.04
Mitchell
-1.20”
-6.31”
Vermillion
-1.03”
-6.43”
Sioux Falls
-1.33”
-6.80”
Gregory
-1.50”
-5.21”
Brookings
-1.15
-5.11”
Sioux City
-0.82”
-5.53”
Sioux Center
-0.29”
-7.14”
Spencer
-0.13”
-5.99
Marshall
-1.27”
-4.74”
Pipestone
-1.16
-7.71”
Windom
-1.47”
-5.44”

Summary of Impacts
Links: See/submit Condition Monitoring Observer Reports (CMOR) and view the Drought Impacts Reporter
Hydrologic Impacts 
River and stream levels are generally near to below normal with groundwater depths falling.  A below normal runoff is forecast by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the Missouri River, with water conservation measures in place for the reservoir system. 

Agricultural Impacts
Pastures providing less feed than normal and some supplemental feed needed. Less water in stock ponds and water being hauled in for livestock. Crop yield possibly below normal but extent unknown at this time. 

Fire Hazard Impacts
No recent reports 

Other Impacts
Executive Order signed by South Dakota Governor for hauling hay waivers. 

Mitigation Actions
Shut off or monitoring notifications for water rights sent to some users. Some municipalities have enacted water restrictions. 


Hydrologic Conditions
Groundwater Wells Data: Renner, SD
Near Huron, SD
USGS Streamflow Data: 
National Water Dashboard
USGS Streamflow Status Map - 14 Day Average (valid 08/13/2026)
Renner, SD Groundwater Well

Agricultural and Soil Moisture Impacts
SD
As of Aug 9th
Very Short Moisture
Short Moisture
Adequate Moisture
Moisture Surplus
Topsoil
39%
34%
25%
2%
Subsoil
39%
34%
26%
1%
IA
As of Aug 9th
Very Short Moisture
Short Moisture
Adequate Moisture
Moisture Surplus
Topsoil
7%
21%
67%
5%
Subsoil
7%
27%
62%
4%
MN
As of Aug 9th
Very Short Moisture
Short Moisture
Adequate Moisture
Moisture Surplus
Topsoil
9%
31%
54%
6%
Subsoil
11%
34%
53%
2%
USDA Crop Progress and Condition Reports
South Dakota
Minnesota
Iowa
Nebraska

Medium and Long-Range Outlooks
The latest medium range and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage
Temperature
Precipitation
Near to below normal temperatures are expected into early of the week of August 16th-22nd. While scattered rain chances exist, widespread impactful rainfall is unlikely. 
Short Range Outlook
Medium to long range outlooks favor near to above normal temperatures through late summer into middle fall with no clear signal in precipitation trends.   
Medium to Long Range Outlook

Drought Outlook
The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage
Rainfall over the past couple of weeks has generally been more hit or miss and inconsistent. This has allowed drought to expand in general across the broader region.

Temperature and precipitation outlooks into the fall months don’t favor significant improvement in drought conditions. 

Drought persistence or expansion is favored through the end of the growing season. 

The latest drought-related information can be found at: weather.gov/fsd/drought. Additional Drought Statements will be issued as conditions warrant. 
The drought monitor is a multi-agency effort involving NOAA’s National Weather Service and National Climatic Data Center, the USDA, state and regional center climatologists and the National Drought Mitigation Center. Information for this statement has been gathered from NWS and FAA observation sites, cooperative and volunteer observations, USDAFS, the USDA and USGS.
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