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Elm Springs, South Dakota

7 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1953 and the latest in 1984. It stands in the Belle Fourche-Cheyenne Valleys unorganized territory. It lies in ZIP code area 57791. The Survey maps it on the Elm Springs quadrangle.

Elm Springs within Meade County

On record in Elm Springs

Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.

On the National Register 1 record

Topographic sheets covering this place

4 surveys from 7 printed sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

Fires near this place

12 since 2002

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 12 fires within 5 miles of Elm Springs between 2002 and 2016, burning about 2,234 acres in total. 4 started naturally. None was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Missing data/not specified/undetermined4
Natural4
Equipment and vehicle use3
Smoking1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
1 September 2011Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreSouth Dakota Wildland Fire SuppressionELM SPRINGS
8 August 2012Missing data/not specified/undetermined225 acresSouth Dakota Wildland Fire SuppressionC&W1
8 August 2012Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreSouth Dakota Wildland Fire SuppressionBEARBUTTE 4
2 August 2007Equipment and vehicle use10 acresSouth Dakota Wildland Fire Suppressionnot named
26 July 2007Missing data/not specified/undetermined150 acresSouth Dakota Wildland Fire Suppressionnot named
18 July 2005Natural400 acresSouth Dakota Wildland Fire SuppressionFIELDS
18 July 2005Natural400 acresSouth Dakota Wildland Fire SuppressionOLSON
17 July 2002Smokingunder an acreMiles City Field OfficeRASPBERRY2

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Meade County

Storms near this place

55 since 2007

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Elm Springs in 55 storm reports between 2007 and 2026: 29 hail, 22 thunderstorm wind, 3 flood, 1 flash flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
May 2019FloodElm Springs$250,000Runoff from heavy rain caused flooding throughout Meade County. Moderate flooding was reported along Elk Creek from north of Rapid City downstream to Elm Springs; which inundated portions of Elk Creek Road, Antelope Creek Road, and Wicksville Road. Minor flooding of agricultural land occurred along the Belle Fourche River, which crested at 19.5 feet, just above flood stage of 19 feet, with a peak flow around 32,200 cfs, at SD Highway 34 east of Sturgis.
July 2012Thunderstorm WindElm Springs$3,000The combination of hail and wind caused minor damage.
April 2026Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-SD mesonet recorded wind gust at this location.
June 2025Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-SD Mesonet recorded wind gust.
August 2025Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-SD Mesonet recorded wind gust.
June 2024Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-Winds were estimated at 60 mph.
June 2022HailElm Springs-Significant roof damage and many broken windows were reported.
June 2022HailElm Springs-Hail damaged property, including making 57 holes in the roof of a large outbuilding.
August 2021HailElm Springs-Hail caused significant damage to vehicles.
May 2020Flash FloodElm Springs-Runoff from heavy rain caused flowed over driveways and rural roads, including Elm Springs Road between the Belle Fourche River and Elm Springs and Torchlight Place south of White Owl. Several fields and normally dry drainage areas were flooded.
June 2018Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-Wind gusts were estimated at 60 mph.
April 2017Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-The observer estimated wind gusts at 60 mph.
July 2017Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-The spotter estimated wind gusts at 65 mph.
June 2016Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-The observer estimated wind gusts at 60 mph.
July 2016Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-Marble sized hail also fell with the storm.
July 2016Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-Wind gusts were estimated at 60 mph.
June 2015Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-Wind gusts were estimated at 80 mph.
July 2015Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-Wind gusts were estimated at 60 mph.
July 2015Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-Wind gusts were estimated around 60 mph.
June 2014Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-Wind gusts were estimated at 60 mph.
June 2014Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-The spotter estimated wind gusts at 60 mph.
July 2013Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-Wind gusts were estimated at 60 mph.
September 2012Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-Wind gusts were estimated at 60 mph.
June 2012HailElm Springs-The combination of hail and gusty winds caused some crop damage.
July 2011Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-Wind gusts were estimated at 80 mph.
May 2011FloodElm Springs-The river gage north of Elm Springs crested at 16.0 feet, which is one foot above flood stage.
June 2011Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-Wind gusts reached 60 mph east of Elm Springs.
July 2007Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-Wind gusts reached 75 mph at 1040 pm MST, then peaked at 90 mph at 1055 pm.
April 2024HailElm Springs-no account filed
July 2022HailElm Springs-no account filed
June 2022HailElm Springs-no account filed
June 2022HailElm Springs-no account filed
June 2022HailElm Springs-no account filed
August 2021HailElm Springs-no account filed
August 2021HailElm Springs-no account filed
May 2020HailElm Springs-no account filed
May 2020HailElm Springs-no account filed
July 2020HailElm Springs-no account filed
August 2019HailElm Springs-no account filed
July 2016HailElm Springs-no account filed
May 2013HailElm Springs-no account filed
July 2013HailElm Springs-no account filed
July 2013HailElm Springs-no account filed
June 2013HailElm Springs-no account filed
June 2013HailElm Springs-no account filed
June 2012HailElm Springs-no account filed
July 2012HailElm Springs-no account filed
June 2012HailElm Springs-no account filed
July 2011HailElm Springs-no account filed
June 2011HailElm Springs-no account filed
June 2009Thunderstorm WindElm Springs-no account filed
June 2008HailElm Springs-no account filed
June 2008FloodElm Springs-no account filed
August 2008HailElm Springs-no account filed
July 2007HailElm Springs-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Meade County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
Dalzell7.3 miles7
Boneita Springs9.3 miles7
Haydraw13.7 miles8
Viewfield17.5 miles8
Enning18.2 miles8
Union Center18.7 miles7
White Owl19.9 miles7
Hereford20.1 miles7

Elsewhere

Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.

Wikipedia article on Elm SpringsAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q5366319The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0).

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1261106. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.