Lightning — Union, South Dakota

2020-08-10 · near Mc Cook Lake, Union, South Dakota

Event narrative

Lightning struck a single-story apartment building and initiated a fire which burned through the entire attic of the building. Crews from North Sioux City and three nearby cities attacked the fire for around two hours. All twenty apartments were severely damaged, displacing all residents. Property damage costs are rough estimates.

Wider weather episode

A cold front pushing across central South Dakota and Nebraska ignited severe storms overnight. With elevated instability of 1000-1500 J/kg and an increasing low-level jet, numerous storms formed along the 700 hPa baroclinic zone with a few taking on bowing characteristics.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (42.5391, -96.5026)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 917371. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.