Pepin County, Wisconsin

What hazards hit Pepin County most?

The most frequent records are winter storm records: 96 since 1996. 45% of its winter storm records since 1996 fell in January and February. The rank column places the county among Wisconsin'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 Pepin County had?

NOAA records 7 tornadoes in Pepin County from 1951 to 2022, the strongest rated F3, with 0 deaths and 6 injuries recorded in the county. That is 31st of 72 Wisconsin counties by days with tornadoes per 1,000 square miles since 1950. 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 8 tornadoes whose track touched Pepin County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 7: they file a crossing tornado once per county segment, and the two databases differ on some tracks); along their whole tracks they killed 0 people.

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in Wisconsin.

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 Pepin County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the July 5, 2016 thunderstorm wind ($246,000 in damage in 2025 dollars).

A mesocyclone that was sometimes three miles wide caused widespread wind damage, knocking down trees, destroying sheds and causing other building damage. The downburst wind damage from the mesocyclone was mostly spread across a 1.5 mile wide area, but occasionally reached a width of three miles. There was also a tornado embedded within the mesocyclone (see separate entry for the tornado).
National Weather Service event narrative, NOAA Storm Events Database (search the full record, event 652875)

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 Pepin 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?

45% of its winter storm records since 1996 fell in January and February. The two busiest months are in violet.

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

Federal disaster declarations for Pepin County

FEMA's register lists 13 declarations that include Pepin County: 10 major disasters, 3 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for flood (4) and severe storm (4).

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 Pepin County had?

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 15 flood or flash flood records for Pepin County from 1997 to 2025, on 15 days, with 0 deaths. By flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA, as of September 8, 2026), Pepin County ranks 1449th of 2,942 U.S. counties.

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $659,000 on 75 claims filed in Pepin County; the most in one year was 18 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 Pepin County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Pepin County Very Low overall, with an expected annual loss of $4.0 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 Pepin County

1. Wabasha County, MN 600
2. Goodhue County, MN 583
3. Buffalo County 511
4. Dunn County 504
5. Pierce County 481
6. Eau Claire County 450
7. Pepin County 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 WisconsinEvery Wisconsin tornado since 1950 and the counties with the most per square mile
• Winter storms in WisconsinThe state's winter storm records, by county, year and month
• The Wisconsin recordEvery hazard in the state, its deadliest events and its federal declarations
• FEMA's risk rating for each hazard in Pepin CountyThe hazard risk calculator: 18 hazards beside the county's record
• Download Pepin County's FEMA declarations (CSV)13 rows: every declaration that named the county, for your own analysis