Natural hazards · Pelican

Pelican, SD natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Pelican comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 10 claims here since 1997.

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 · OpenFEMA claims, aid & declarations

Expected damage

How exposed is Pelican?

Low

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Pelican to be higher than in 38% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and tornadoes.

Inland flooding49%Tornadoes18%Cold waves16%Ice storms7%Everything else11%

By hazard

What Pelican faces

Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how that compares with the rest of the country.

Inland flooding

49% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 50% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

18% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 92% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 79 years in the area

Cold waves

16% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 63% of U.S. places

Recorded about 13 times a year in the area

Ice storms

7% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 90% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Lower here

HailWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightningDrought

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingHurricanesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.

Flood insurance claims

Does Pelican flood?

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Pelican, from FEMA’s records.

10paid claims since 1997

$136Kpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

19972026

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

No community discount. Pelican isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Codington County.

Disasters that hit Pelican

Federal disasters declared here

None of the disasters declared for Codington County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Pelican itself in FEMA’s records.

Brought FEMA money into PelicanDeclared for Codington County only

Codington County has had 21 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.

Around Pelican

Pelican and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Watertownmostly inland floodingHigh

Lakemostly inland floodingModerate

Sheridanmostly inland floodingModerate

Kampeskamostly inland floodingModerate

Oxfordmostly inland floodingModerate

Pelicanmostly inland floodingLow

About these numbers

How to read this page

An average, not a forecastFEMA’s National Risk Index estimates the damage 18 kinds of natural hazards cause in a typical year, from decades of records and models. A quiet decade can follow a bad year.

Compared by rate“Higher than N%” compares yearly damage as a share of what’s here, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings. Pelican covers 1 census tract, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Pelican’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Township of Pelican. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

FEMA’s expected losses across Pelican total about $2.5M a year, counting buildings, people and crops.

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025); OpenFEMA: NFIP redacted claims, multiple-loss properties, community status book and residential penetration rates, housing assistance (owners and renters), public assistance funded projects, hazard mitigation properties and disaster declarations. Census tracts: U.S. Census Bureau.