Walsh County, ND Environment & Hazard Risk

• Winter weatherRelatively High$529K/yr expected annual loss, about 23 events a year
• Ice stormRelatively High$661K/yr expected annual loss, about once every 2 years
• WildfireRelatively Low$477K/yr expected annual loss, about once every 756 years
• HailRelatively Moderate$947K/yr expected annual loss, about 3.4 events a year
• Cold waveRelatively Moderate$2.44M/yr expected annual loss, about 23 events a year
• TornadoRelatively Low$1.11M/yr expected annual loss, about once every 1 year
• Strong windRelatively Low$485K/yr expected annual loss, about 1.9 events a year
• DroughtVery Low$28.77K/yr expected annual loss, about 5.7 events a year
• LandslideVery Low$342/yr expected annual loss, about once every 8 years
• LightningVery Low$58.56K/yr expected annual loss, about 26 events a year
• Heat waveVery Low$34.95K/yr expected annual loss, about 1.1 events a year
• EarthquakeVery Low$8,008/yr expected annual loss, about once every 12,658 years

Bars show the national percentile score (0 to 100) for each hazard. Dollar figures are expected annual losses to buildings, people and crops. Not rated here: avalanche, coastal flooding, hurricane, riverine flooding, tsunami, volcanic activity.

Check the flood zone for an address

Homes with flood insurance

46 of 4,780 (1.0%)

Homes in high-risk flood zones

1,202

Insured in high-risk zones

39 (3%)

Flood claims since 1978

782

Claims paid since 1978

$3.08M

• Hail205
• Thunderstorm Wind137
• Blizzard136 · 1 death
• Extreme Cold/Wind Chill120
• Winter Storm80
• Heavy Snow56
• High Wind48
• Tornado40
• Flood39 · 1 death
• Cold/Wind Chill34

• Blizzard04/05/1997

  Eastern Walsh

  1 death, $6M damage

  What happened

  With falling temperatures on the back side of the low, the freezing rain turned to ice pellets and then to snow. A strong pressure gradient created winds up to 65 mph, dropping visibilities down to zero. The strong wind, on top of heavy ice accumulations, caused thousands of power poles to snap. This cut power to over 100,000 people in eastern North Dakota and northwest Minnesota and resulted in $30 million in damages just to the power infrastructure. A 2,060 foot television tower collapsed near Galesburg on April 5th. With power cut, many people had to seek shelters with generator power in order to keep warm. Some smaller communities were without power for more than a week. Most television and radio stations were knocked off the air, causing one Fargo radio station to become the only source of storm news for the area. In Grand Forks, 3 inches of ice pellets fell, and as the wind increased, one foot drifts of ice pellets were created. Snowfall totals on the 6th ranged around 7 inches. Interstates 29 and 94 were both closed in North Dakota, along with US Highway 2 from Lakota to Grand Forks. A 33 year-old Lankin man died from exposure, after walking away from his...

• Flood04/27/2013

  Fairdale, Walsh County

  1 death, $20K damage

  What happened

  A 55 year old Walsh County man is believed to have died after his pickup was swept away from a water-covered gravel road Monday evening, April 29th, about 3 miles southwest of Minto, N.D.. The pickup was recovered but the man's body has yet to be found.

• Flood04/19/1997

  Eastern Walsh

  $10M damage

  What happened

  Floodwaters from the Red River closed Interstate 29 at the Oslo, Minnesota, exit. Most roads east of the interstate were closed due to high water. A ring dike around the city of Grafton kept it dry from the Park River. The Red River crested on the 23rd in Oslo.

• Ice Storm04/04/1997

  Eastern Walsh

  $6M damage

  What happened

  An intense low pressure system, with center pressures around 28.8 inches, tracked from Fergus Falls to International Falls, Minnesota. The initial rain was accompanied by lightning and thunder in southern Grand Forks county, and then changed to freezing rain as the temperature dropped. One-half to 2 inches of ice built up on exposed surfaces. Hundreds of power poles and lines snapped due to the weight of the ice, cutting power to many homes and businesses, many of which were beginning to fight the spring flood. The wind reporting systems on the AWOS and ASOS sites across eastern North Dakota froze in place, remaining out for 7 days. The three inches of liquid equivalent from the storm fell on top of a record snowpack.

• Flood03/27/2004

  Eastern Walsh

  $1.9M damage

  What happened

  [See antecedent conditions written in brackets under Ramsey county]. For eastern Walsh county, river flood warnings were issued for the Park River at Grafton and the Forest River at Minto. Grafton crested right around its major (16 feet) flood stage on the 30th. Minto crested over its moderate (8 feet) flood stage on the 30th. For all of Walsh county, 100 miles of county/township roads were closed with nearly 400 road sites damaged. County-wide, damages were reported totalling $2.4 million. Most of this damage occurred in the eastern half of the county. US Highway 81 was closed from Manvel to Grafton. Grafton, the largest city with a population of around 5,000, had the worst flooding. The Park River crest at Grafton was not the highest on record (which occurred in April of 1950), but was higher than the level in April 1997 (the last big flood event). Nearly 100 homes took on water, mostly basement flooding and sewer backup. This caused about $1 million in damage just to Grafton. The city park was also flooded. The town of Minto, population 560, also had serious flooding. The Forest River crest at Minto was also not as high as the record event in April 1950, but...

• Flood04/18/2023

  Poland, Walsh County

  $1M damage

  What happened

  Oslo - Crest of 36.27 feet occurred on 4/24. Flooding extended into May.|NOTE: Damages dollar amount is for the entire county. Not separated by specific river basin or damage type.

• Excessive Heat07/26/2026

  Eastern Walsh

• Excessive Heat07/12/2026

  Eastern Walsh

• Excessive Heat07/12/2026

  Western Walsh

• Hail1" hail06/30/2026

  Minto, Walsh County

• Thunderstorm Wind63 kt wind06/03/2026

  Adams, Walsh County

• Frost/Freeze05/20/2026

  Eastern Walsh

• Frost/Freeze05/20/2026

  Western Walsh

• Frost/Freeze05/11/2026

  Eastern Walsh

• Grafton City ofServes 4,284 · Surface water · Local governmentNo health violations
• Walsh Rural Water DistrictServes 3,000 · Purchased groundwater · PrivateNo health violations
• Park River City ofServes 1,403 · Groundwater · Local governmentNo health violations
• Minto City ofServes 604 · Purchased groundwater · Local governmentNo health violations