A statewide tornado drill conducted in South Dakota between 9:00 and 9:30 am MDT on Wednesday, April 21, 2021. Because the exercise is used to ensure communications and warning systems are functioning properly before storm season, people will see and hear the actual alerts used for tornadoes. Communities may sound local warning sirens, although the sirens may not be heard inside homes and buildings, especially large office buildings, as they are intended to alert people who are outdoors away from radio or TV. Local emergency response agencies may practice their response procedures and schools will conduct safety drills for their students.

The drill will also include a test of the Emergency Alert System, which will interrupt local media broadcasts. The scroll on television will look like a real warning, while the audio will be identified as a test.

Cell phone alerts and other electronic notification systems will not be involved in the test.

Information on preparing for storms is on the Severe Weather Preparedness Week web page.  People may also contact their county emergency management office or the Black Hills Area Chapter of the American Red Cross for additional information.

Text-to-9-1-1 Option Available in South Dakota

PIERRE, S.D. – Text-to-9-1-1 is now available throughout South Dakota.

Wireless cell phone customers in South Dakota can text to 9-1-1 when they can’t call in an emergency. The text, like a phone call, will be routed to a local 9-1-1 dispatch center.

“Text-to-9-1-1 should only be used in an emergency when you can’t call 9-1-1,” said Craig Price, cabinet secretary for the South Dakota Department of Public Safety. “The Text-to-9-1-1 option would be good to use if speaking out loud would put the caller in danger or if the caller is deaf, hard-of-hearing or speech impaired.”

Text-to-9-1-1 is not yet 100 percent activated in Todd County. People texting 9-1-1 in that county will receive a message stating that text service is unavailable and they will be directed to make a 9-1-1 call instead.

People who are unable to call 9-1-1, should remember these steps about Text to 9-1-1:

• Don’t text and drive.
• In the first text message, send the location and type of emergency.
• Text in simple words; keep the text message short without the use of abbreviations or slang.
• Be prepared to answer questions and follow instructions from the 9-1-1 call taker.
• Voice calls to 9-1-1 are still the best and fastest way to contact 9-1-1.
• Call 9-1-1 if you can, text if you can’t.

For more information on the Text to 9-1-1 program in South Dakota, visit text911sd.com.

The state 9-1-1 Coordination Program is part of the South Dakota Department of Public Safety.

Full Fact Sheet about Text-to-9-1-1

The Fall River & Oglala Lakota County courthouse will have a two hour late start on Monday,  March 15th due to the winter storm. This may be extended to a full day closure should weather continue.

Oglala Lakota County assessment notices were mailed on Friday, February 26th.  Residents of Oglala Lakota County should expect to see their assessment notice arrive this week.  If you do not receive your notice please contact the Director of Equalization’s office at 605-745-5136 or [email protected] .

Things to check on your assessment notice:

• Value – the value should indicate what your property would sell for on the open market.  If you feel this number does not represent your properties value you have a short window of time to appeal this value. Check out the Appeal Deadline page and contact the Director of Equalization’s office at the contact information above.
• Class – There are three properties classes in South Dakota: OO – owner occupied (this is for your primary residence), AG – agricultural properties, NA – non-agricultural properties (this includes everything else including commercial).  The class code shows up between the school district and acre/lot information.
• Name, Legal, Acreage – Particularly if there have been changes such as sales or new plats on your property this year it is a good idea to check the basic information on the assessment notice to insure that no typos have been made along with the changes.

If any of the above information needs correction or if you have questions please contact the Director of Equalization’s office at 605-745-5136 or [email protected]

Remember that it is not possible to appeal your taxes, only your assessment value can be appealed.  When the tax bill is published next January for these values it will be too late to make corrections to values.