Goodhue County, Minnesota

What hazards hit Goodhue County most?

The most frequent records are severe thunderstorm wind events: 171 since 1968. 60% of its severe thunderstorm wind events since 1968 fell in June and July. The rank column places the county among Minnesota's counties by days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land over each hazard's complete period.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (county and forecast-zone records attributed to the county; a zone record shows its own totals on each county it covers). Days: dates with at least one record of the hazard in the county. Ranks: days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer), since 1950 for tornadoes, 1955 for hail and thunderstorm wind, 1996 for the rest.

How many tornadoes has Goodhue County had?

NOAA records 35 tornadoes in Goodhue County from 1967 to 2025, the strongest rated F3, with 0 deaths and 0 injuries recorded in the county. A tornado that crossed a county line is counted in each county it touched, with the length of its path inside the county.

Counted as whole tornadoes rather than county records, the Storm Prediction Center's database holds 35 tornadoes whose track touched Goodhue County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 35, the same count); along their whole tracks they killed 0 people.

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in Minnesota.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, tornado records by county (path length in the county, maximum width); ratings as published: F scale before February 1, 2007, EF scale after. Whole-track figures: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database (1950-2025). SPC severe weather database.

When was the last damaging storm in Goodhue County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the December 28, 2025 winter storm (1 injury).

The combination of falling snow and breezy winds resulted in winter storm conditions throughout the county. Snowfall reports ranged from 4 to 6, and the highest report was 6.0 inches in Red Wing. Surface visibilities reported at KSYN in Stanton dropped to 1 mile or less for several hours, and winds gusted to around 25 to 30 mph while snow was falling throughout much of the 28th. There were difficult travel conditions which resulted in a semi-truck rollover near the intersection of Highway 52 and County Rd 11 in Pine Island, MN. The driver was injured and taken to a nearby hospital.
National Weather Service event narrative, NOAA Storm Events Database (search the full record, event 1300496)

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database; every record of 2025-2026 is listed, earlier ones when they caused deaths, injuries or $250,000 of damage (2025 dollars), and every tornado.

The deadliest and costliest records

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths and injuries direct and indirect; damage is property plus crops as estimated by the National Weather Service, converted to 2025 dollars.

Is it getting more frequent?

Records per decade for Goodhue County's most frequent hazards. Counts rose everywhere after 1996, when NOAA began recording every event type, so compare decades within a hazard's complete period only (the shaded cells come before it).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records per calendar decade; zone records from the CZ_TYPE field (Z).

What time of year?

60% of its severe thunderstorm wind events since 1968 fell in June and July. The two busiest months are in violet.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began.

Federal disaster declarations for Goodhue County

FEMA's register lists 18 declarations that include Goodhue County: 15 major disasters, 3 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for flood (8) and severe storm (5).

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), declarations through October 2, 2026; one declaration is counted once however many areas it names. OpenFEMA dataset page.

How many floods has Goodhue County had?

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 29 flood or flash flood records for Goodhue County from 1997 to 2019, on 22 days, with 3 deaths. By flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA, as of September 8, 2026), Goodhue County ranks 913th of 2,942 U.S. counties.

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $2.7 million on 209 claims filed in Goodhue County; the most in one year was 48 in 2001. Claims count insured losses only: uninsured flood damage is not in this file.

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims, as of September 8, 2026; claims by year of loss, payments in the dollars of the year paid. OpenFEMA dataset page.

FEMA's modeled risk for Goodhue County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Goodhue County Relatively Low overall, with an expected annual loss of $26.2 million. These are FEMA's model estimates of future loss from 18 hazards, not a count of what happened; they can differ from the record above.

Source: FEMA National Risk Index, county table, December 2025 release. FEMA's National Risk Index map.

Counties that share a border with Goodhue County

1. Olmsted County 1,083
2. Dakota County 844
3. Wabasha County 600
4. Goodhue County 583
5. Dodge County 573
6. Rice County 571
7. Pierce County, WI 481
8. Pepin County, WI 260

Source: U.S. Census Bureau county adjacency file; NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1950. The Census Bureau's adjacency file.

Next

• Tornadoes in MinnesotaEvery Minnesota tornado since 1950 and the counties with the most per square mile
• Severe thunderstorm wind in MinnesotaThe state's severe thunderstorm wind events, by county, year and month
• The Minnesota recordEvery hazard in the state, its deadliest events and its federal declarations
• FEMA's risk rating for each hazard in Goodhue CountyThe hazard risk calculator: 18 hazards beside the county's record
• Download Goodhue County's FEMA declarations (CSV)18 rows: every declaration that named the county, for your own analysis