National Weather Service confirms Memorial Day tornadoes in Minnehaha County

June 3, 2022

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — The National Weather Service (NWS)  has confirmed two early morning tornadoes struck Minnehaha County during severe storms on Memorial Day.

The NWS confirmed an tornado touched down briefly in Sioux Falls around 2 a.m. It traveled a third of a mile with peak winds of 90 mph. The tornado damaged residential structures and felled multiple trees.

Another tornado touched down about two miles outside of Brandon around the same time. That twister traveled about half-a-mile and had peak winds of 105 mph. It damaged a church roof and toppled trees at a nearby farm.

The NWS rated both twisters as EF-1s on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, which rates tornado intensity from EF-0 to EF-5.