Expected losses in Oacoma break down as 48% from inland flooding and 33% from cold waves. Compared with 85% of U.S. communities, expected storm and flood damage locally is higher.

85risk score of 100

FEMA risk score

Inland floodingCold wavesHail

Full pageOacoma’s hazards pageOpen the page

What it facesVery high risk Flood claims0 paid flood claims · No paid flood claims on record Past disasters14 disaster declarations · Declared for the county Get ready1.1 events a year, on average · Ready for inland flooding

FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA

Climate

A typical July afternoon in Oacoma is hotter than in most of South Dakota or the rest of the country

The seasons in Oacoma: cold, snowy winters, warm summers, with very little rain. July afternoons reach 89°, January nights drop to 9° and about 43 inches of snow falls in a winter.

43″snow a winter

Typical low → high °F

Winter12–34°

Spring34–60°

Summer60–86°

Fall37–63°

Oct 7

typical first frost

May 3

typical last frost

+1.2°

vs. the 20th-century average

Full pageOacoma’s climate pageOpen the page

A year of weatherJuly highs 89°, January lows 9°Rain & snow43″ of snow a winter · 22 inches of rain and snow a year Heating & coolingMostly a heating bill Then and now+1.2° vs. the 20th century · Warmer than the 20th-century average

NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020

Work & commute

With 1.5 jobs for every working resident, Oacoma draws in 203 commuters

Half of commuters travel less than 35 miles. Since 2013, Oacoma has lost 122 jobs, to 213 in 2023. Just 7% of the town’s working residents have a job in town. The average trip to work for Oacoma comes to 15 minutes, against 17 minutes in South Dakota’s towns and 25 minutes across U.S. towns.

7%work in town

	Oacoma	South Dakota towns	U.S. towns
Average trip to work	15 minutes	17 minutes	25 minutes
Working residents who work in town	7%	29%	8%
Below the poverty line	5.5%	9.5%	9.6%

Where working residents work

In Oacoma7%

Presho10%

Sioux Falls9%

Chamberlain6%

Pierre5%

35 mi

median commute distance

213

jobs based in Oacoma

Balanced

jobs vs. working residents

Full pageOacoma’s work & commute pageOpen the page

The jobs here213 jobs based here · Balanced Where people work7% work in Oacoma Commute times15 minutes · The average commute How far they goHalf commute less than 35 miles

Census LEHD 2023 · ACS

Health

A smaller share of adults in Oacoma sleep under 7 hours than in the typical South Dakota or U.S. town

In Oacoma, 16% of adults say their health is fair or poor, where South Dakota’s towns sit at 16% and U.S. towns at 19%. The share of adults in Oacoma who binge drink: 17%. Among 36 South Dakota towns, just 2 have a lower share of adults who have been diagnosed with depression than Oacoma. The town does better than the South Dakota average on 4 of 26 CDC measures and worse on 2.

	Oacoma	South Dakota towns	U.S. towns
Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES)	27%	30%	36%
Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES)	13%	15%	17%
Depression (CDC PLACES)	19%	22%	23%
High blood pressure (CDC PLACES)	37%	31%	35%

26 measures vs. South Dakota

4 better20 too close to call2 worse

What stands out	Oacoma	SD
Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth	9.6%	12.7%
More adults seeing a dentist	75.5%	69.2%
More adults who have had cancer	11.4%	9.2%

Sanford Chamberlain Medical Center

2.5 mi away · emergency room

3 of 3

care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health

Full pageOacoma’s health reportOpen the page

Everyday habitsFewer adults sleeping under 7 hours Hospitals & doctors nearby2.5 miles to an ER · Sanford Chamberlain Medical Center How adults are doingFewer adults in frequent mental distress Every CDC estimateBetter than SD on 4 of 26

CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA

Keep exploring

Everything we know about Oacoma

14pages on Oacoma

The big questions

HealthBetter than SD on 4 of 26 CDC measures Cost of livingWork & commute$73K median household income · 213 jobs here Natural hazardsFEMA risk higher than 85% of U.S. communities · inland flooding

Out and about

PlacesLibraryCozard Memorial Library

The story

HistorySettled 1890 Town Hall & politicsOne full-time town employee per 98 residents Climate89° summer highs · 43″ of snow

Day to day

NewsWeatherHandbookZIP code 57365 Town SquareNeighbors

After high school

Colleges nearby

None within 15 miles of Oacoma; the nearest are

Dakota Wesleyan UniversityUniversity or college · Private nonprofit · Mitchell67 mi$33,790 tuition Mitchell Technical CollegeCommunity college · Public · Mitchell68.5 mi$7,524 in-state tuition Sinte Gleska UniversityUniversity or college · Public · Mission72 mi$4,714 in-state tuition

About 4 of every 100 Oacoma residents are enrolled in college, about the same as South Dakota.

Prices by family income, graduation and earnings →

About Oacoma

Town in South Dakota, United States

Oacoma is a town in Lyman County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 386 at the 2020 census. Oacoma is located on the west bank of the Missouri River, across from Chamberlain, South Dakota.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)

Area: 4.2 sq mi
Elevation: 1,385 ft
ZIP code: 57365

Questions about Oacoma

Short answers, built from the data on this page.

Is Oacoma, SD a good place to live?

Oacoma has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.

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Is Oacoma a good place to live?

391 people, and everyone knows the way

136 years in pictures

Moving to Oacoma: who provides what

The data

Top of a very high hazard risk in Oacoma: inland flooding