Sheldon, Iowa — A system of thunderstorms rumbled through the area Wednesday night, and early Thursday, prompting the National Weather Service in Sioux Falls to issue a flurry of Severe Thunderstorm Warnings from south central and southeast South Dakota through northwest Iowa and southwest Minnesota, before the system moved out of the area.
The first Severe Thunderstorm Warning issued by the Sioux Falls Weather Station came at 8:45 pm, and was for counties in south central South Dakota. At 9:09, they issued a warning for counties in southeast South Dakota.
The first Severe Thunderstorm Warning for northwest Iowa came at 11:52 pm, and was for O’Brien, Cherokee, Clay, and Buena Vista counties, warning of the potential for 70 mile-per-hour winds. The last warning from NWS Sioux Falls came at 12:08 am, and was issued for Woodbury County.
The system passed through the Sheldon area shortly after midnight Thursday morning, bringing with it wind gusts of up to 30-miles-per-hour, significantly lower than the 70 mph wind velocity the NWS had predicted.
Sheldon experienced some heavy rainfall as the system passed through, with 67-hundredths of an inch of rain measured at the KIWA Studios. The system also caused a 7-degree temperature drop within a 40-minute time span, with temperatures recorded at the Sheldon Regional Airport of 73-degrees at 11:55 pm, dropping to 66-degrees by 12:35 am.
The National Weather Service says we have another chance of thunderstorms this afternoon and tonight, with sunshine returning to the area tomorrow, and into the weekend.
