The Cheyenne River Sioux Indian Reservation in north-central South Dakota has faced many extreme weather events—heavy winter snow and ice storms, tornadoes and blistering summer heat. In July 2024, the reservation was hit with powerful, long-lasting winds causing damage so severe the federal government declared it a major disaster.
“The wind was 106 miles per hour for a half an hour straight—super, super dangerous,” said Art Rave, director of the local nonprofit Cheyenne River Long Term Recovery Group. “It's scary, it's consistent and, oh man, rips off roofs. Debris flying everywhere.”
Extreme weather can have negative impacts on community health and well-being, often displacing residents or causing injuries and long-term power outages that can leave people isolated with no access to emergency services and health care. Residents of the rural Cheyenne River reservation are particularly vulnerable to these health risks.
“The size of our reservation is 4.2 million acres. We're like the size of Connecticut, it's pretty huge,” Rave said. “It takes like an hour and a half for an ambulance to reach some of our most rural locations and to come back to the hospital for emergency services.”
Power lines taken down by ice and snow on the rural Cheyenne River reservation. (photo courtesy of Moreau-Grand Electric Cooperative/the Cheyenne River Long Term Recovery Group)
Heavy rain and thawing ice and snow cause flooding of the Moreau River in South Dakota. (photo courtesy of the Cheyenne River Long Term Recovery Group)
With support from Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies and the CDC Foundation, the Cheyenne River Long Term Recovery Group has been working to help community members prepare for weather-related disasters and better protect themselves from the associated health effects. “Us being in a rural area, we're kind of off grid already, or off the map already,” Rave said. “Building resiliency in our communities is our mission because there isn’t anyone coming to save them in most instances.”
As part of this mission, the organization has arranged local Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) trainings to educate volunteers on how they can help their communities before, during and after emergencies happen. “During that time, you’re talking life or death,” Rave said. “CERT is creating these emergency response team members, giving people the basic, lifesaving skills to protect their loved ones.” The training courses include first aid, fire safety, search and rescue and other disaster response skills.
Local volunteers participate in a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training in Dupree, South Dakota. (photo courtesy of the Cheyenne River Long Term Recovery Group)
Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) volunteers from the Cheyenne River reservation learn critical first aid skills to prepare them to help their community during emergencies. (photo courtesy of the Cheyenne River Long Term Recovery Group)
Building resiliency in our communities is our mission.
For residents who live in the more remote, hard-to-reach parts of the reservation, the local radio station, KIPI, serves as a kind of lifeline during emergencies. The Cheyenne River Long Term Recovery Group partnered with KIPI to install solar and battery backup systems at the station, ensuring uninterrupted health messaging during outages, storms or disasters. In January, they also launched the EMS Warrior show, hosted by Harold Tiger—a trusted first responder who has worked in the community for over 40 years and understands the challenges people in this region face. Every week, Tiger shares information on topics like heat, safety, air quality and disaster preparation.
Much of the reservation is located in what Art Rave refers to as a “radar dead zone,” and storms can sometimes move in with little warning. This spring, the Cheyenne River Long Term Recovery Group sponsored a “storm spotter” training in the city of Eagle Butte. Residents learned how storms develop, how to identify severe weather conditions and how to keep themselves and their families safe. The training was held in the local movie theater, and participants were treated to free popcorn and a screening of the film Twisters afterward.
“It was just great to see the young kids come there with their parents, get them interested in the weather, why it happens and what to look for, like certain cloud formations and temperature changes,” Rave said. “It really became a cool event.”
Broadcast booth in the KIPI radio station in Eagle Butte, South Dakota. (photo courtesy of the Cheyenne River Long Term Recovery Group)
First responder Harold Tiger leads a local Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training in Dupree, South Dakota to educate volunteers on how they can help their communities. (photo courtesy of the Cheyenne River Long Term Recovery Group)
A radio tower situated in the rural landscape of the Cheyenne River reservation. The local radio station, KIPI, serves as a lifeline during emergencies for remote, hard to reach residents. (photo courtesy of the Cheyenne River Long Term Recovery Group)
The Cheyenne River Long Term Recovery Group makes partnership central to their work, collaborating with public health agencies, tribal government, health providers and local businesses. The CDC Foundation continues to provide the organization with technical assistance, including trainings on communication strategies and accessing and using data effectively and has connected the Cheyenne River Long Term Recovery Group with over a dozen other organizations doing similar resiliency work in communities throughout the Midwest and Gulf South states. While each region faces unique weather challenges, Rave values the support of these organizations and the opportunity to learn from their strategies, experiences and expertise.
“We're not the only ones that are facing these tough times. We're getting information from people from Florida or New Orleans that have been through worse disasters; and there are organizations like the CDC Foundation, tribal support and people who want to help,” Rave said. “That gives us hope.”
Header image credit: U.S. Army National Guard photo by Spc. Kristin Stoneback/Released
