Drought Information Statement for 
SE SD, SW MN, NW IA, Far NE Neb 
Valid September 3, 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.
DROUGHT CONDITIONS REMAIN IN PLACE WITH LOCAL VARIABILITY IN SEVERITY OF THE DROUGHT


LONG RANGE OUTLOOKS FAVOR DROUGHT CONDITIONS PERSISTING THROUGH END OF THE 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 With Localized Extreme Drought…

Drought Intensity and Extent

D3 (Extreme Drought): Small pockets across southeastern South Dakota and southwest Minnesota.

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

D1 (Moderate Drought): Remaining areas of southwest Minnesota, southeast South Dakota and portions of northwest Iowa.

D0 (Abnormally Dry): Portions of Beadle, Jerauld, and Brule county in southeast South Dakota.

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
-1.21”
-2.17”
Mitchell
-1.70”
-6.96”
Vermillion
-0.70”
-6.10”
Sioux Falls
-2.13”
-7.76”
Gregory
-0.34”
-3.18”
Brookings
-0.17”
-4.13”
Sioux City
-0.09”
-4.81”
Sioux Center
-1.27”
-7.59”
Spencer
+0.03”
-5.83”
Marshall
-3.20”
-6.67”
Pipestone
-0.74”
-7.29”
Windom
-3.55”
-7.52”

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 earlier this summer. 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 09/03/2026)
Renner, SD Groundwater Well

Agricultural and Soil Moisture Impacts
SD
As of Aug 30th
Very Short Moisture
Short Moisture
Adequate Moisture
Moisture Surplus
Topsoil
34%
46%
19%
1%
Subsoil
38%
43%
19%
0%
IA
As of Aug 30th
Very Short Moisture
Short Moisture
Adequate Moisture
Moisture Surplus
Topsoil
3%
24%
67%
6%
Subsoil
5%
22%
67%
6%
MN
As of Aug 30th
Very Short Moisture
Short Moisture
Adequate Moisture
Moisture Surplus
Topsoil
17%
41%
41%
1%
Subsoil
17%
43%
38%
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
Above normal temperatures are expected into the second week of September. The prospects for widespread beneficial rain look low with better rain chances to the northeast of the of the immediate region. 
Short Range Outlook
Medium to long range outlooks favor a continuation of above normal temperatures into the fall months. Precipitation outlooks favor near to above normal precipitation. 
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 continued to be more hit or miss and inconsistent. This has allowed drought to persist or expand in general across the broader region.

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