National Weather Service United States Department of Commerce

Areas of Severe Thunderstorms and Excessive Rainfall; Heat Wave Builds in the Intermountain West and Plains

A slow moving front will bring rounds of strong to severe thunderstorms and heavy rainfall to the central Plains eastward to the east-central U.S.. The first widespread significant heat wave of summer for the Intermountain West and Plains is expected to develop today and expand through next week. Dangerous heat will continue to impact portions of the Southwest and Southeast. Read More >

The following tables show the climate information for Rapid City, Gillette, Lead, Winner, Lemmon, Sundance, Spearfish, Newcastle, Hot Springs, and Custer on Christmas, as well as the weather in Rapid City and Gillette for the past 10 Christmas Days. Record highs around the area have reached the 50s and 60s, with record lows in the teens and 20s below zero.

Most locations have experienced a white Christmas over the past few years, with Rapid City, Lead, Winner, and Spearfish all seeing a white Christmas in 2023. Of the five sites listed, white Christmases have been most frequent in Lead, occurring around 80% of the time.