Why does South Dakota need 7 inches when it closes so readily for blizzards?

Because depth is rarely the problem. Sioux Falls averages 12.5 days a year with an inch or more and plows through them; the closures come when a Blizzard Warning or a -40 wind chill makes the roads impassable or the bus stop dangerous. The high threshold keeps the wind and cold terms in charge of the number.

Do South Dakota schools have to make up snow days?

They have to reach their hours: 875 for grades 1 to 5 and 962.5 for grades 6 to 12. Most districts schedule more than that, so a few closures cost nothing; the only waiver is under a declared state of emergency.

Does Sioux Falls use remote learning on storm days?

It added remote learning days ahead of the 2023-24 winter, with the final call made that morning, while some smaller districts returned to plain snow days. There is no state rule either way for ordinary weather; the meter scores whether buildings close.

Why is April Rapid City's snowiest month?

Upslope. Spring storms push moist air into the Black Hills, where it rises and dumps heavy wet snow; Rapid City's April normal is 10.1 inches against 5.3 in January. The meter treats an April blizzard exactly like a January one.

Snow day calculator South Dakota

Chance of a snow day

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Best time to check

The evening before, after 9 pm: The evening model runs are in by then and the forecast here refreshes every 30 minutes. A number read at 6 pm can move by several inches of snow before midnight.
The morning of, 5 to 7 am: The strip above shades 4 to 7 am. Snow still falling in those hours lands on the commute, so the model counts it extra, and most districts have decided by the time the buses roll at 7.

When districts actually decide

Portland Public Schools, Oregon publishes its closure decision no later than 5 am (read 10 Oct 2026)
Omaha Public Schools announced the 23 January 2026 cold closure at 5:50 pm the evening before (read 10 Oct 2026)
Little Rock School District announced a two-day closure the afternoon before the 9 January 2025 storm (read 10 Oct 2026)
Minnesota e-learning days must be announced at least two hours before the normal start time, by statute (read 10 Oct 2026)

Every district sets its own cut-off; these are published examples, not a rule.

South Dakota schools usually close around 7 inches of overnight snow. Wind chill and blizzard conditions close schools far more than snow depth. The meter below opens on Sioux Falls; type your ZIP or town and it reads tonight's hourly forecast for your exact spot and scores it against the South Dakota threshold.

How much snow it takes in South Dakota

South Dakota closes for blizzards and wind chill, not for inches. Sioux Falls averages 45.3 inches a season and 4.9 days with 3 inches or more, Aberdeen 42.7, Rapid City 48.5, and Rapid City's snowiest month is April, when upslope storms pile wet snow on the Black Hills. The model's 7-inch threshold is set high so that the wind term, the Blizzard Warning and the wind chill at bus time carry the decision, which is what they do on the ground.

The state's own plan explains the rest. The transportation department runs 394 full-time snowplows, 26 tow plows and 105 snow blowers over nearly 7,800 miles of highway, and its plows normally work from 5 am to 7 pm only, so a storm that runs through the night leaves roads untouched at bus time. The state can close any highway for weather, interstate or not, and when I-29 or I-90 shuts, so do the schools along them. On 13 March 2026 the department warned of possible road closures all over the state ahead of a weekend blizzard.

Remote days are a local choice: Sioux Falls added them for 2023-24, while smaller districts such as Elkton went back to plain snow days.

South Dakota winter by the numbers

Station	Snow per season	Days with 1″+	Days with 3″+	Snowiest month
Sioux Falls	45.3″	12.5	4.9	Dec
Rapid City	48.5″	14.8	4.5	Apr
Aberdeen	42.7″	12.5	4.1	Feb

1991-2020 climate normals for the airport or first-order station in each city, read 2026-10-10 from the NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. “Days with 3″+” is the average number of calendar days a year with at least 3 inches of new snow.

How closures are decided in South Dakota

South Dakota's year is written in hours and set locally. The school term must provide at least 437.5 hours for kindergarten, 875 for grades 1 to 5 and 962.5 for grades 6 to 12, exclusive of intermissions, and each local board sets the number of days, the length of the day and the days in a week (SDCL 13-26-1). There is no day count to make up; a district that closes simply has to reach its hours, and the secretary of education may waive them only if the governor or the president declares a state of emergency.

The same section, amended in 2021, says that continuous instruction provided during a declared emergency counts toward the hours only if the Department of Education decides the nature and scope of the instruction merits it. We found no state programme or cap for ordinary weather remote days; whether Sioux Falls' remote day counts is a matter of its own calendar and hours. The 149 regular districts decide closures themselves, usually the morning of.

Minimum school year: 437.5 / 875 / 962.5 hours by grade band; days set by the local board (SDCL 13-26-1)
Hour waivers: Only under a governor's or president's declared emergency
Remote snow days: No state programme; Sioux Falls adopted them in 2023-24, others dropped them
State plows: 394 full-time plows and 26 tow plows on about 7,800 miles, working 5 am to 7 pm (SDDOT 2024-25 plan)

Questions people ask

Why does South Dakota need 7 inches when it closes so readily for blizzards?: Because depth is rarely the problem. Sioux Falls averages 12.5 days a year with an inch or more and plows through them; the closures come when a Blizzard Warning or a -40 wind chill makes the roads impassable or the bus stop dangerous. The high threshold keeps the wind and cold terms in charge of the number.
Do South Dakota schools have to make up snow days?: They have to reach their hours: 875 for grades 1 to 5 and 962.5 for grades 6 to 12. Most districts schedule more than that, so a few closures cost nothing; the only waiver is under a declared state of emergency.
Does Sioux Falls use remote learning on storm days?: It added remote learning days ahead of the 2023-24 winter, with the final call made that morning, while some smaller districts returned to plain snow days. There is no state rule either way for ordinary weather; the meter scores whether buildings close.
Why is April Rapid City's snowiest month?: Upslope. Spring storms push moist air into the Black Hills, where it rises and dumps heavy wet snow; Rapid City's April normal is 10.1 inches against 5.3 in January. The meter treats an April blizzard exactly like a January one.

Sources

SDCL 13-26-1, length of the school term (read 2026-10-10)
SDDOT, condensed winter highway maintenance plan 2024-25 (read 2026-10-10)
SDDOT, ready for forecast blizzard conditions, 13 Mar 2026 (read 2026-10-10)
Dakota News Now, districts plan remote learning days as winter nears, 31 Oct 2023 (read 2026-10-10)
NCES Digest table 214.30, regular school districts by state, 2021-22 (read 2026-10-10)
NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020, Sioux Falls, Rapid City and Aberdeen (read 2026-10-10)

The closure threshold itself is our model's estimate from typical district practice, not an official figure. Districts, not states, make the call. The model page shows every term.

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