Minnesota tornadoes
Every recorded tornado since 1950 · 87 counties with a record
Minnesota has recorded 2,216 tornadoes from 1950 through 2025, about 45 a year since 2000, with 82 rated F3/EF3 or stronger (NOAA Storm Prediction Center). The deadliest was the August 6, 1969 Fifty Lakes tornado (12 deaths in Minnesota). Minnesota ranks 13th of 52 states and territories by count and 23rd of 51 per square mile.
Tornadoes in Minnesota, 1950 to 2025
Tornadoes per year (SPC; a tornado that crossed a state line counts in each state it touched).
- recorded, no damage figure
- under $1 million
- $1 million or more
- $10 million or more
- $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
- $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
- a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
- a year with a death
- 1996: tornado reports rose with NEXRAD Doppler radar, mid-1990s (SPC)
- Tornadoes
- 2,2161950 to 2025
- A year since 2000
- 45average
- Deaths
- 1001,987 injuries
- F3/EF3 or stronger
- 824% of tornadoes
- Busiest year
- 2010113 tornadoes
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025 (state segments). SPC severe weather database.
Are tornadoes common in Minnesota?
Minnesota averages about 45 tornadoes a year since 2000, 13th of 52 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2010 (113). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Minnesota records 278 tornadoes since 1950, 23rd of 51 states and territories by that measure.
Source: NOAA SPC, tornadoes 1950-2025, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.
Which counties in Minnesota have the most tornadoes?
Per square mile, Freeborn County leads Minnesota: 40 days with a tornado record since 1950, 56.6 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Otter Tail County has the most tornado records (87 since 1950); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1950 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.
When is tornado season in Minnesota?
56% of its tornadoes since 1950 fell in June and July. The busiest month is June (717 tornadoes).
The values, month by month
Jan 0 · Feb 0 · Mar 25 · Apr 79 · May 354 · Jun 717 · Jul 532 · Aug 314 · Sep 130 · Oct 38 · Nov 5 · Dec 22 (records).
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, state segments by the month they began, 1950-2025.
What were the deadliest tornadoes in Minnesota?
| Date | Counties | Rating | Path in state | Killed | Injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1969-08-06 | Fifty Lakes · Crow Wing, Cass, Aitkin | F4 | 32.3 mi | 12 | 70 |
| 1968-06-13 | Tracy · Murray, Lyon, Redwood | F5 | 9.1 mi | 9 | 150 |
| 1965-05-06 | Minneapolis to Blaine · Hennepin, Ramsey | F4 | 17.3 mi | 6 | 158 |
| 1967-04-30 | Waseca · Freeborn, Waseca | F4 | 20.1 mi | 6 | 22 |
| 1953-05-10 | Hollandale · Freeborn | F2 | 6.9 mi | 6 | 3 |
| 1951-07-20 | Minnetonka to Bloomington · Hennepin | F3 | 11.6 mi | 5 | 40 |
| 1967-04-30 | Albert Lea to Owatonna · Freeborn, Steele | F4 | 38.7 mi | 5 | 35 |
| 1978-07-05 | Fosston · Norman, Mahnomen, Polk, Clearwater | F2 | 57.5 mi | 4 | 44 |
| 1965-05-06 | Minneapolis to Blaine · Anoka | F4 | 6.8 mi | 3 | 175 |
| 1965-05-06 | Minnetrista to Independence · Carver, Hennepin | F4 | 12.3 mi | 3 | 175 |
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database (state segments: deaths and path inside Minnesota), 1950-2025; counties are the first four the SPC lists for the segment. SPC severe weather database.
Where have the strongest tornadoes tracked in Minnesota?
- F2/EF2
- F3/EF3
- F4/EF4
- F5/EF5
- no end point filed
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, start and end points of each track; county lines: Census Bureau cartographic boundaries (2017), via us-atlas. SPC severe weather database. Census cartographic boundary files.
The strongest tornadoes in Minnesota
| Date | Counties | Rating | Path in state | Width | Killed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1968-06-13 | Tracy · Murray, Lyon, Redwood | F5 | 9.1 mi | 150 yd | 9 |
| 1992-06-16 | Chandler · Nobles, Murray | F5 | 16 mi | 280 yd | 1 |
| 1957-06-20 | Fargo · Clay | F5 | 25 mi | 400 yd | 0 |
| 1969-08-06 | Fifty Lakes · Crow Wing, Cass, Aitkin | F4 | 32.3 mi | 833 yd | 12 |
| 1967-04-30 | Waseca · Freeborn, Waseca | F4 | 20.1 mi | 267 yd | 6 |
| 1965-05-06 | Minneapolis to Blaine · Hennepin, Ramsey | F4 | 17.3 mi | 667 yd | 6 |
| 1967-04-30 | Albert Lea to Owatonna · Freeborn, Steele | F4 | 38.7 mi | 100 yd | 5 |
| 1965-05-06 | Minnetrista to Independence · Carver, Hennepin | F4 | 12.3 mi | 300 yd | 3 |
| 1965-05-06 | Minneapolis to Blaine · Anoka | F4 | 6.8 mi | 1,000 yd | 3 |
| 1953-05-10 | Stanley · Fillmore, Olmsted, Winona | F4 | 46.4 mi | 100 yd | 2 |
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database; F scale before February 1, 2007, EF scale after.
The longest tornado paths in Minnesota
| Date | Tornado and counties | Rating | Path in state | Width | Killed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1977-08-26 | Fergus Falls to Pequot Lakes · Otter Tail, Wadena, Cass, Crow Wing | F2 | 110.4 mi | 880 yd | 0 |
| 1952-06-23 | Eden Prairie · Cottonwood, Brown, Nicollet, Sibley | F2 | 104.8 mi | 220 yd | 0 |
| 1998-03-29 | Courtland · Murray, Cottonwood, Watonwan, Brown | F4 | 73.5 mi | 1,500 yd | 1 |
| 1966-06-11 | Crosslake · Crow Wing, Cass | F4 | 72.8 mi | 333 yd | 0 |
| 1952-06-24 | Minneapolis to Columbus · Le Sueur, Scott, Hennepin, Anoka | F2 | 70.9 mi | 267 yd | 0 |
| 1978-07-05 | Fosston · Norman, Mahnomen, Polk, Clearwater | F2 | 57.5 mi | 400 yd | 4 |
| 1973-09-01 | Big Falls · Koochiching | F2 | 54.5 mi | 100 yd | 0 |
| 1981-06-21 | Belview to Clements · Yellow Medicine, Redwood, Brown | F2 | 54.3 mi | 200 yd | 0 |
| 1951-06-19 | Corcoran to Andover · McLeod, Wright, Hennepin, Anoka | F4 | 52.6 mi | 330 yd | 1 |
| 1966-06-24 | Clay, Norman, Mahnomen, Clearwater | F1 | 49.8 mi | 10 yd | 0 |
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, state segments: path length and width inside the state. SPC severe weather database.
Tornadoes in every Minnesota county
All 87 counties: tornadoes whose track touched each, and the strongest
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database: whole tornadoes whose track touched the county (any state segment listing it). SPC severe weather database.
The costliest tornadoes in Minnesota
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998-05-15 | TornadoRoseville, Ramsey County Tornado touched down in Roseville, and travelled straight north through Shoreview, North Oaks, Lino Lakes, eventually lifting off in Blaine in Anoka County. 7 houses destroyed, 102 severely damaged. Damaged estimate for entire county including widespread wind driven hail. | F1 7 mi x 350 yd | 0 | 0 | $272M |
| 2011-05-22 | TornadoSt Louis Park, Hennepin County A strong EF-1 tornado touched down approximately 3/4 of a mile south-southwest of the intersection of Interstate 394 and Highway 100 in St. Louis Park, Minnesota. It traveled north-northeast through Golden Valley, and across North Minneapolis, before moving into Anoka County. Damage was widespread along the path and ... | EF1 6.05 mi x 880 yd | 1 | 48 | $218M |
| 1998-03-29 | TornadoNicollet County Tornado made a direct hit on the city of St. Peter and Gustavius Adolphus College. All major buildings on campus suffered varying degrees of damage. The spire on Christ Chapel snapped in half. 70% of the windows on campus were broken. 500 homes were destroyed in St. Peter, 1,700 were damaged. Over 1,000 trees ... | F3 12 mi x 2,200 yd | 1 | 0 | $217M |
| 1998-03-29 | TornadoComfrey, Brown County Tornado began 7 miles east of Avoca in Murray county, continued through Cottonwood, Brown, extreme Northwest Watonwan, Northwest Blue Earth, and finally lifted off 4 miles east of Courtland in Nicollet county. Total storm track was 67 miles. The tornado ripped through the village of Comfrey destroying a grain elevator ... | F4 25 mi x 2,200 yd | 1 | 16 | $81M |
| 1998-03-29 | TornadoWestbrook, Cottonwood County A strong tornado which began in Murray County tracked across Cottonwood County and then further northeast. The tornado destroyed numerous farms, farm equipment, buildings, trees, power lines and poles, vehicles, and other structures in its path. A vehicle was tossed a hundred yards as it hit the first farm in ... | F3 39.5 mi x 900 yd | 0 | 3 | $54M |
| 2006-09-16 | TornadoRogers, Hennepin County A tornado touched down on the western edge of Sylvan Lake and moved quickly northeast. It produced F0 damage to some farms and rural residences in Hassan Township before strengthening and entering the northwest corner of Rogers. It gained F2 status briefly as it moved through a residential neighborhood in Rogers, ... | F2 7 mi x 100 yd | 1 | 0 | $44M |
| 1998-03-29 | TornadoCleveland, Le Sueur County Tornado tracked through Le Center and adjoining rural areas. Most of the businesses in the southern part of town were damaged. Buildings destroyed at county fairgrounds. 15 mobiles homes at a trailer park destroyed, another 26 suffering major damage. Over 100 farm buildings destroyed. | F2 17 mi x 1,760 yd | 0 | 2 | $36M |
| 2006-08-24 | TornadoKasota, Le Sueur County The F3 tornado that began in Nicollet County at 1630 CST moved into Le Sueur County near the northern city limits of Kasota. Over 100 homes suffered some damage, dozens of homes had major damage, and three were completely leveled. The tornado moved east-northeast for about ten miles in Le Sueur County, then turned and ... | F3 17.5 mi x 880 yd | 1 | 30 | $35M |
Before 1993 NOAA filed damage by category, not amount, so the list above starts in 1993. The highest category filed here before then (entered as $25M, in the dollars of the day) holds: May 6, 1965 (tornado, Hennepin County, 6 killed); April 30, 1967 (tornado, Waseca County, 6 killed); July 20, 1951 (tornado, Hennepin County, 5 killed); April 30, 1967 (tornado, Freeborn County, 5 killed); May 6, 1965 (tornado, Anoka County, 3 killed).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.
Are tornadoes becoming more frequent in Minnesota?
Minnesota's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. The Storm Prediction Center notes that tornado reports rose especially around the installation of the NEXRAD Doppler radar network in the mid-1990s, so a rising count is partly better detection; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.
| Decade | Minnesota | United States | Minnesota's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 90 | 4,837 | 1.9% |
| 1960s | 199 | 6,863 | 2.9% |
| 1970s | 175 | 8,633 | 2.0% |
| 1980s | 199 | 8,250 | 2.4% |
| 1990s | 378 | 12,205 | 3.1% |
| 2000s | 427 | 12,892 | 3.3% |
| 2010s | 455 | 12,232 | 3.7% |
| 2020-25 | 293 | 8,234 | 3.6% |
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, state segments.
The most recent tornadoes in Minnesota
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-29 | TornadoCentral Lakes, St. Louis County | EF1 1.6 mi x 100 yd | 0 | 0 | $100K |
| 2026-06-29 | TornadoHawley Municipal Airport, Clay County | EF0 2.4 mi x 30 yd | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-06-23 | TornadoBagley, Clearwater County | EFU 2.69 mi x 25 yd | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-06-19 | TornadoLaporte, Hubbard County | EF0 2.78 mi x 50 yd | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-05-27 | TornadoBruce, Rock County | EFU 2.63 mi x 40 yd | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-05-17 | TornadoBigelow, Nobles County | EFU 1.25 mi x 25 yd | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-05-17 | TornadoOrg, Nobles County | EFU 0.61 mi x 20 yd | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-05-17 | TornadoGordonsville, Freeborn County | EF1 0.37 mi x 50 yd | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-05-17 | TornadoConger, Freeborn County | EF1 1.07 mi x 50 yd | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-05-17 | TornadoNorthrop, Martin County | EFU 0.29 mi x 25 yd | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-04-17 | TornadoElgin, Wabasha County | EF2 3.9 mi x 200 yd | 0 | 0 | $90K |
| 2026-04-17 | TornadoViola, Olmsted County | EF2 3.53 mi x 200 yd | 0 | 0 | $546K |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.
Federal disaster declarations for tornadoes in Minnesota
FEMA has declared 17 disasters in Minnesota for tornadoes, counting its incident type and declarations that name tornado in the title (FEMA files most storm disasters under Severe Storm); 17 were major disasters, the latest on August 9, 2022.
| Declared | Number | Title | Areas named |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-08-09 | DR-4666 | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding | 23 |
| 2022-07-08 | DR-4658 | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding | 23 |
| 2018-09-05 | DR-4390 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding | 31 |
| 2011-07-28 | DR-4009 | Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes | 16 |
| 2011-06-07 | DR-1990 | Severe Storms and Tornadoes | 2 |
| 2010-07-02 | DR-1921 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding | 13 |
| 2002-06-14 | DR-1419 | Severe Storms, Flooding and Tornadoes | 19 |
| 2001-05-16 | DR-1370 | Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes | 72 |
| 1998-06-23 | DR-1225 | Severe Storms, Straight Line Winds, and Tornadoes | 19 |
| 1998-04-01 | DR-1212 | Tornadoes and Severe Storms | 7 |
| 1997-08-25 | DR-1187 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, High Winds, Flooding | 7 |
| 1995-08-18 | DR-1064 | Severe Thunderstorms, Winds, Flooding, Tornadoes, and Heat | 15 |
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), through October 2, 2026. OpenFEMA dataset page.
Next
- Freeborn County: the county's whole recordThe Minnesota county with the most tornadoes per square mile
- Tornadoes across the United StatesEvery state ranked, by year and month
- Every natural hazard in MinnesotaTornadoes, floods, storms, heat and the federal declarations
- Hail in Minnesota15,756 records
- Severe thunderstorm wind in Minnesota13,697 records
- Winter storms in Minnesota12,156 records