Out of 67 counties with wildfire data, these are the counties with the highest smoke exposure risk.
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Counties ranked | 67 |
| Avg smoke risk (top 100) | 22/100 |
| Total county fires 5yr (top 100) | 1,043 |
Top 67 Counties
| Rank | County | State | Smoke Risk | County Fires (5yr) | ZIP Codes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oglala Lakota | South Dakota | 54/100 | 129 | 1 |
| 2 | Shannon | South Dakota | 46/100 | 129 | 8 |
| 3 | Fall River | South Dakota | 42/100 | 129 | 6 |
| 4 | Pennington | South Dakota | 40/100 | 140 | 17 |
| 5 | Custer | South Dakota | 39/100 | 66 | 5 |
| 6 | Mellette | South Dakota | 37/100 | 63 | 8 |
| 7 | Bennett | South Dakota | 36/100 | 18 | 1 |
| 8 | Lawrence | South Dakota | 29/100 | 43 | 6 |
| 9 | Meade | South Dakota | 29/100 | 37 | 8 |
| 10 | Jackson | South Dakota | 28/100 | 19 | 2 |
| 11 | Brookings,Deuel | South Dakota | 28/100 | 0 | 1 |
| 12 | Hughes | South Dakota | 27/100 | 8 | 1 |
| 13 | Perkins | South Dakota | 26/100 | 6 | 5 |
| 14 | Walworth | South Dakota | 26/100 | 1 | 4 |
| 15 | Haakon | South Dakota | 25/100 | 19 | 5 |
| 16 | Stanley | South Dakota | 25/100 | 18 | 1 |
| 17 | Jones | South Dakota | 25/100 | 6 | 3 |
| 18 | Deuel | South Dakota | 25/100 | 0 | 5 |
| 19 | Butte | South Dakota | 24/100 | 37 | 6 |
| 20 | Ziebach | South Dakota | 24/100 | 32 | 2 |
| 21 | Harding | South Dakota | 24/100 | 23 | 6 |
| 22 | Lyman | South Dakota | 24/100 | 13 | 7 |
| 23 | Corson | South Dakota | 24/100 | 11 | 4 |
| 24 | Roberts | South Dakota | 24/100 | 1 | 9 |
| 25 | Grant | South Dakota | 24/100 | 0 | 8 |
| 26 | Dewey | South Dakota | 23/100 | 35 | 13 |
| 27 | Lake | South Dakota | 23/100 | 1 | 4 |
| 28 | Kingsbury | South Dakota | 23/100 | 1 | 4 |
| 29 | Aurora | South Dakota | 22/100 | 1 | 4 |
| 30 | Edmunds | South Dakota | 22/100 | 1 | 4 |
| 31 | Potter | South Dakota | 22/100 | 0 | 5 |
| 32 | Sully | South Dakota | 21/100 | 8 | 3 |
| 33 | Bon Homme | South Dakota | 21/100 | 4 | 6 |
| 34 | Charles Mix | South Dakota | 21/100 | 4 | 6 |
| 35 | Brule | South Dakota | 21/100 | 2 | 5 |
| 36 | Brookings | South Dakota | 21/100 | 0 | 7 |
| 37 | Campbell | South Dakota | 20/100 | 11 | 4 |
| 38 | Jerauld | South Dakota | 20/100 | 2 | 3 |
| 39 | Minnehaha | South Dakota | 20/100 | 1 | 31 |
| 40 | Moody | South Dakota | 20/100 | 1 | 6 |
| 41 | Miner | South Dakota | 20/100 | 1 | 4 |
| 42 | Beadle,Kingsbury | South Dakota | 20/100 | 1 | 1 |
| 43 | Hyde | South Dakota | 19/100 | 8 | 5 |
| 44 | Codington | South Dakota | 19/100 | 0 | 5 |
| 45 | Davison | South Dakota | 19/100 | 0 | 2 |
| 46 | Sanborn | South Dakota | 18/100 | 1 | 6 |
| 47 | Douglas | South Dakota | 18/100 | 0 | 4 |
| 48 | Faulk | South Dakota | 18/100 | 0 | 4 |
| 49 | Tripp | South Dakota | 17/100 | 5 | 4 |
| 50 | Hamlin | South Dakota | 17/100 | 1 | 10 |
| 51 | McPherson | South Dakota | 17/100 | 0 | 3 |
| 52 | Day | South Dakota | 16/100 | 1 | 8 |
| 53 | Beadle | South Dakota | 16/100 | 1 | 7 |
| 54 | Hand | South Dakota | 16/100 | 0 | 1 |
| 55 | Clark | South Dakota | 15/100 | 1 | 7 |
| 56 | Hutchinson | South Dakota | 15/100 | 0 | 7 |
| 57 | Marshall | South Dakota | 15/100 | 0 | 7 |
| 58 | Spink | South Dakota | 14/100 | 1 | 12 |
| 59 | McCook | South Dakota | 14/100 | 0 | 7 |
| 60 | Yankton | South Dakota | 14/100 | 0 | 8 |
| 61 | Brown | South Dakota | 13/100 | 1 | 14 |
| 62 | Gregory | South Dakota | 13/100 | 0 | 7 |
| 63 | Lincoln | South Dakota | 12/100 | 1 | 10 |
| 64 | Clay | South Dakota | 12/100 | 0 | 3 |
| 65 | Turner | South Dakota | 12/100 | 0 | 5 |
| 66 | Hanson | South Dakota | 12/100 | 0 | 3 |
| 67 | Union | South Dakota | 8/100 | 0 | 4 |
Methodology
County rankings for South Dakota based on average smoke risk score and fire frequency.
Data sources: National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC), EPA AirNow. Last updated: 2026-06-04.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is wildfire smoke risk calculated?
Smoke risk scores (0-100) combine multiple factors: proximity to recent wildfires, county fire frequency over the past 5 years, historical smoke days, and geographic position relative to typical fire corridors. Higher scores indicate greater smoke exposure risk during fire season.
How can I protect myself from wildfire smoke?
Use a HEPA air purifier indoors, wear N95 or KN95 masks outdoors during smoke events, seal windows and doors, and monitor AirNow.gov for real-time air quality. Create a clean room in your home with the purifier running and windows sealed.