Sinkhole risk in Deuel County, SD: Mostly deep or small

Mostly deep or small

Some soluble rock, mostly deeply buried or in a small share of the county.

On soluble rock: 11%
At or near the surface: 0%
Buried under cover: 11%

What to do about a house in Deuel County

Sinkholes are uncommon here; watch for new depressions after heavy rain or leaking pipes.

That works out to roughly 69 of Deuel County's 623 square miles on soluble rock. With about 4,335 residents (7 per square mile), much of the land is open, and the mapped rock may sit far from where people actually live. The figures come from 400 map points about 1.2 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Worth reading for this county: why the 11% under cover still counts, and how these percentages are measured.

Counties around Deuel County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Knox County, NE, about 158 miles southwest. 2 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band; the ground changes quickly around here.

Hamlin County, SD 25 mi west · 0% at surface
Brookings County, SD 27 mi south · 0% at surface
Codington County, SD 29 mi northwest · 0% at surface
Grant County, SD 29 mi north · 0% at surface
Lac qui Parle County, MN 30 mi northeast · 0% at surface
Lincoln County, MN 32 mi southeast · 0% at surface

The rock underneath

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Niobrara Formation (limestone), Late Cretaceous in age, covering about 11% of the county.

Against the rest of South Dakota

Deuel County ranks 26 of 66 in South Dakota for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 0% of US counties on that measure.