Minnesota Environment & Hazard Risk
2 counties rated high or very high risk. 50,885 storm events since 1996, #12 among states.
- Expected yearly loss
- $2.6B
- $453 per person
- Storm events since 1996
- 50,885
- Most often hail
- Flood insurance policies
- 5,166
- $155M in claims paid
- Superfund sites
- 49
- 489 toxic release facilities
Risk by county
FEMA National Risk Index rating, highest risk first
| County | Overall risk | Top hazard | Flood policies | Flood claims paid |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hennepin County | High | Cold wave | 882 | $4.6M |
| Ramsey County | High | Cold wave | 179 | $1.3M |
| St. Louis County | Moderate | Cold wave | 290 | $1.8M |
| Dakota County | Moderate | Strong wind | 161 | $3.9M |
| Anoka County | Moderate | Strong wind | 230 | $451K |
| Stearns County | Moderate | Strong wind | 153 | $1.1M |
| Washington County | Moderate | Strong wind | 247 | $5.4M |
| Olmsted County | Moderate | Cold wave | 154 | $5.3M |
| Otter Tail County | Low | Winter weather | 7 | $1.4M |
| Crow Wing County | Low | Cold wave | 88 | $71.7K |
| Itasca County | Low | Cold wave | 17 | $122K |
| Scott County | Low | Strong wind | 117 | $1.1M |
| Rice County | Low | Strong wind | 69 | $3.6M |
| Clay County | Low | Winter weather | 177 | $13.8M |
| Blue Earth County | Low | Strong wind | 50 | $1.3M |
| Carlton County | Low | Cold wave | 29 | $627K |
| Winona County | Low | Landslide | 113 | $3.9M |
| Wright County | Low | Strong wind | 124 | $2M |
| Mower County | Low | Drought | 75 | $11.2M |
| Polk County | Low | Winter weather | 102 | $36.3M |
| Morrison County | Low | Lightning | 49 | $613K |
| Pine County | Low | Cold wave | 106 | $1.4M |
| Beltrami County | Low | Winter weather | 3 | $11.2K |
| Carver County | Low | Strong wind | 88 | $215K |
| Aitkin County | Low | Cold wave | 101 | $755K |
| Sherburne County | Low | Strong wind | 107 | $478K |
| Cass County | Low | Cold wave | 8 | $65.4K |
| Kandiyohi County | Low | Strong wind | 16 | $132K |
| Benton County | Low | Hail | 76 | $180K |
| Freeborn County | Low | Drought | 13 | $902K |
| Brown County | Low | Cold wave | 29 | $493K |
| Nobles County | Low | Hail | 18 | $209K |
| Fillmore County | Low | Landslide | 77 | $753K |
| Pennington County | Low | Wildfire | 7 | $57.8K |
| McLeod County | Low | Strong wind | 34 | $103K |
| Wabasha County | Low | Landslide | 64 | $3.4M |
| Faribault County | Low | Drought | 9 | $70.4K |
| Martin County | Low | Winter weather | - | - |
| Nicollet County | Low | Strong wind | 33 | $553K |
| Chisago County | Low | Strong wind | 37 | $422K |
| Douglas County | Low | Winter weather | 11 | $281K |
| Roseau County | Low | Wildfire | 44 | $3.4M |
| Lyon County | Low | Winter weather | 29 | $163K |
| Goodhue County | Low | Strong wind | 78 | $2.7M |
| Renville County | Very Low | Drought | 3 | $69.7K |
| Todd County | Very Low | Wildfire | 33 | $127K |
| Becker County | Very Low | Winter weather | 5 | $1.1M |
| Steele County | Very Low | Strong wind | 66 | $2M |
| Chippewa County | Very Low | Winter weather | 6 | $2.5M |
| Hubbard County | Very Low | Landslide | 3 | $292K |
| Redwood County | Very Low | Winter weather | 4 | $143K |
| Lake County | Very Low | Strong wind | 8 | $938K |
| Koochiching County | Very Low | Cold wave | 23 | $322K |
| Yellow Medicine County | Very Low | Heat wave | 11 | $1.9M |
| Houston County | Very Low | Landslide | 38 | $1.1M |
| Mille Lacs County | Very Low | Wildfire | 57 | $119K |
| Cottonwood County | Very Low | Winter weather | 59 | $470K |
| Meeker County | Very Low | Hail | 26 | $142K |
| Isanti County | Very Low | Wildfire | 63 | $226K |
| Swift County | Very Low | Winter weather | 6 | $144K |
| Waseca County | Very Low | Drought | 10 | $111K |
| Watonwan County | Very Low | Winter weather | 3 | $1.1M |
| Marshall County | Very Low | Drought | 23 | $6.8M |
| Sibley County | Very Low | Strong wind | 5 | $66.2K |
| Le Sueur County | Very Low | Strong wind | 88 | $2.7M |
| Jackson County | Very Low | Winter weather | 22 | $366K |
| Kanabec County | Very Low | Cold wave | 9 | $173K |
| Pope County | Very Low | Winter weather | 9 | $38.1K |
| Murray County | Very Low | Drought | 23 | $166K |
| Lac qui Parle County | Very Low | Cold wave | 4 | $224K |
| Lincoln County | Very Low | Hail | 2 | $7,496 |
| Pipestone County | Very Low | Winter weather | 6 | $357K |
| Norman County | Very Low | Drought | 45 | $2.5M |
| Dodge County | Very Low | Drought | 30 | $476K |
| Wadena County | Very Low | Wildfire | 13 | $32.5K |
| Cook County | Very Low | Wildfire | 12 | $64.5K |
| Rock County | Very Low | Hail | 14 | $162K |
| Big Stone County | Very Low | Cold wave | 30 | $834K |
| Mahnomen County | Very Low | Drought | 2 | $150K |
| Stevens County | Very Low | Winter weather | 5 | $7,926 |
| Traverse County | Very Low | Hail | 22 | $1.1M |
| Wilkin County | Very Low | Winter weather | 35 | $7.4M |
| Kittson County | Very Low | Wildfire | 17 | $1.8M |
| Clearwater County | Very Low | Wildfire | - | $235K |
| Lake of the Woods County | Very Low | Wildfire | 24 | $129K |
| Grant County | Very Low | Winter weather | 1 | $62.4K |
| Red Lake County | Very Low | Drought | - | $8,241 |
Storm events by type
Since 1996: 208 deaths, $5.3B in property and crop damage
- Hail13,720
- Thunderstorm Wind10,878 · 19 deaths
- Winter Storm5,122 · 10 deaths
- Extreme Cold/Wind Chill2,915 · 14 deaths
- Heavy Snow2,803 · 9 deaths
- Blizzard2,191 · 10 deaths
- Winter Weather1,684 · 34 deaths
- Tornado1,520 · 14 deaths
- Drought1,478
- Flash Flood1,360 · 15 deaths
- High Wind1,358 · 1 death
- Flood1,325 · 8 deaths
Events per year
Most damaging storms
Since 2017, ranked by deaths, injuries and damage
- Flood06/01/2019
Florence, Lyon County
$28.3M damage
What happened
During crop planting season, prolonged flooding led to the loss of or inability to plant crops across the area. Crop loss estimates provided by the United States Department of Agriculture.
- Flood06/01/2019
Verdi, Lincoln County
$25M damage
What happened
During crop planting season, prolonged flooding led to the loss of or inability to plant crops across the area. Crop loss estimates provided by the United States Department of Agriculture.
- Heavy Rain05/09/2018
Mc Gregor, Aitkin County
2 deaths, 3 injured
What happened
Two individuals were killed with three others injured, one with life-threatening injuries, when one vehicle skidded into another. Pavement was wet from recent rainfall. According to the MN State Patrol, all involved in the crash were wearing seat belts.
- Winter Weather02/13/2020
Mower
2 deaths, 2 injured, $13K damage
What happened
Two people were killed and two more were injured in a single vehicle accident on Interstate 90 near Dexter. Light snow fell during the evening of February 12th followed by northwest winds of 15 to 25 mph into the morning of the 13th. This created some blowing and drifting snow and caused icy conditions to develop on some roads. The driver of the vehicle lost control on an icy spot, went through the median before coming to a stop in the opposite lanes of traffic. The two people killed were thrown from the vehicle.
- Heavy Snow11/11/2021
Central St. Louis
2 deaths, 2 injured
What happened
Heavier than expected snow led to snow and ice covered roads along the Iron Range. This lead to a multi-vehicle accident near Gilbert that resulted in two fatalities (indirect) and at least two injuries (indirect) from one vehicle. The occupants of the other vehicles in the wreck were not injured or had non-life threatening injuries. Snowfall totals of 5 to 7 inches were reported along the Range with the highest report being 6.8 in Chisholm.
- Flood06/01/2019
Florence, Murray County
$21.9M damage
What happened
During crop planting season, prolonged flooding led to the loss of or inability to plant crops across the area. Crop loss estimates provided by the United States Department of Agriculture.
Flood insurance
National Flood Insurance Program policies and claims
5,166 homes in Minnesota have flood insurance, about 0.2% of residential buildings. In high-risk flood zones, 2,778 of 16,708 homes (17%) are insured.
- Flooding$64.8M · 3,802 claims
- Severe flooding$7.4M · 714 claims
- June Midwest Flooding$5.3M · 117 claims
- Not a named storm$3.6M · 847 claims
- Torrential rain$3.3M · 269 claims
- Winter storm$2.5M · 145 claims
Drinking water
969 community water systems serve about 4,694,451 people
Since 2021, 70 systems reported 323 health-based violations. 49 systems had a violation of any kind still open at last report. These had the most:
- Inver Grove HeightsServes 34,189 · Groundwater · Local government22 health violations
- Skyline Village Mobile Home ParkServes 1,185 · Groundwater · Private21 health violations
- River and Woods Mobile Home ParkServes 25 · Groundwater · Private21 health violations+2 monitoring or reporting
- Oak Manor Mobile Home ParkServes 150 · Groundwater · Private17 health violations+19 monitoring or reporting
- Shorewood ParkServes 85 · Groundwater · Private16 health violations+4 monitoring or reporting
- Starland HB, Inc.Serves 100 · Groundwater · Private15 health violations
- Lake LillianServes 236 · Groundwater · Local government13 health violations+4 monitoring or reporting
- Lake Mary VillasServes 37 · Groundwater · Private12 health violations+14 monitoring or reporting
Select a county above to see every system that serves it.
Pollution sites
49 Superfund sites and 489 toxic release facilities
Superfund sites
- Baytown Township Ground Water PlumeFinal NPL Site, Baytown Township
- Burlington Northern (Brainerd/Baxter Plant)Final NPL Site, Brainerd/Baxter
- Fmc Corp. (Fridley Plant)Final NPL Site, Fridley
- Freeway Sanitary LandfillFinal NPL Site, Burnsville
- General Mills/Henkel Corp.Final NPL Site, Minneapolis
- Highway 100 and County Road 3 Groundwater PlumeFinal NPL Site, Edina, St. Louis Park
- Joslyn Manufacturing & Supply co.Final NPL Site, Brooklyn Center
- Koppers CokeFinal NPL Site, St. Paul
Largest toxic releases
- Xcel Energy Sherburne County Generating Plant3.3 million lbs, Becker
- Gopher Resource LLC2.4 million lbs, Eagan
- Boswell Energy Center2.0 million lbs, Cohasset
- Filmtec Corp1.2 million lbs, Edina
- Sappi Cloquet LLC935,715 lbs, Cloquet
- Flint Hills Resources Pine Bend LLC769,808 lbs, Rosemount
- ADM688,518 lbs, Mankato
- Chs Mankato638,625 lbs, Mankato
Facilities in Minnesota reported 22.1 million lbs of toxic releases in 2024, 8.5 million lbs of it into the air.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the biggest natural hazard in Minnesota?
- By expected annual loss, cold wave costs the most in Minnesota ($471M a year), according to FEMA's National Risk Index.
- How many storms hit Minnesota each year?
- NOAA recorded 50,885 storm events in Minnesota since 1996, about 1,641 a year. The most common type is hail.
- How many homes in Minnesota have flood insurance?
- 5,166 residential flood insurance policies are in force in Minnesota. Since 1978 the National Flood Insurance Program has paid $155M on 12,290 claims here.
- How many Superfund sites are in Minnesota?
- Minnesota has 49 Superfund sites on or deleted from EPA's National Priorities List.
Source: FEMA, NOAA, EPA · Last updated 08/01/2026 · Storm counts include events in forecast zones that touch each county. This product uses the FEMA OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA.