Cass County, Minnesota severe weather history spans 557 recorded events between 1959 and 2025. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 47.2% of all recorded events. It ranks #699 nationally and #14 in Minnesota.
557
Recorded events
14
Direct deaths
79
Direct injuries
$10.9M
Property damage
The record
What the Cass County, Minnesota severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Cass County, Minnesota severe weather history averages 8.4 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 166 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 61 events fall before 1990 and 496 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Cass County, Minnesota record is tornado, responsible for 13 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $10.3M in reported property damage. In total, 8 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Cass County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 263 | 0 | $15K | 3 | 1959–2025 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 255 | 1 | $76K | 90 | 1970–2025 |
| Tornado | 28 | 13 | $10.3M | F4 | 1964–2025 |
| Lightning | 4 | 0 | $255K | 0 | 2015–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2018–2024 |
| Funnel Cloud | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2008–2020 |
| Flood | 1 | 0 | $300K | 0 | 2012–2012 |
| Waterspout | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–1998 |
Decade by decade
Cass County, Minnesota severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
32 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 24 touched down inside it and 8 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1969-08-06 | EF4 | 12 | 70 | 32.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 1966-06-11 | EF4 | 0 | 0 | 72.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 1991-07-05 | EF3 | 0 | 3 | 6.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1977-08-26 | EF3 | 0 | 11 | 26.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1969-08-06 | EF3 | 0 | 4 | 17.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2022-05-30 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 10.5 mi | Crossed in |
| 1991-07-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1977-08-26 | EF2 | 0 | 10 | 110.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 1991-07-05 | EF1 | 1 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-06-16 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 11.5 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Cass County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 6, 1969 | Tornado | 12 | 70 | $2.5M | |
| Aug 14, 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | OUTING | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Jul 6, 1991 | Tornado | 1 | 0 | $0 | |
| Aug 6, 1969 | Tornado | 0 | 4 | $2.5M | |
| Jun 12, 2016 | Lightning | PONTORIA | 0 | 3 | $0 |
| Jun 30, 2018 | Lightning | GULL LAKE | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jul 22, 1976 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $25K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Lightning struck a house east of Pine River, MN the morning of July 28th. The lightning caused extensive damage. It hit three large white pines and the house. It scorched outlets and wires, and blew out sheet rock and light fixtures. There was also some fire damage.
The tornado crossed into Cass County from Wadena County along County Road 30 just south of 84th Street Southwest and tracked northeast for about half a mile before lifting just after crossing 84th Street Southwest. The tornado blew a center pivot irrigation system across 84th Street Southwest, snapping power poles in the process. No other damage was observed. The time of the tornado was estimated by radar and peak winds were around 100 mph.
A positive bolt of lightning struck a large red pine tree on a cul-de-sac on the south side of Loon Lake just southeast of the town of Pequot Lakes. The bolt caused extensive damage to one of the homes on the cul-de-sac including blowing out two well systems, burning the electric lines into the home, damaged a water line along with a water heater and water softener, blew off multiple tongue and groove boards, insulation and soffit on the house and a shed, destroyed internet and phone lines and all equipment connected to it, and had several wires burn and melt, leading to a smoky haze in the home. All of the homes on the cul-de-sac had some degree of damage, ranging from blown outlets to warped soffit pieces to blown out wells.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
30,992
Population (ACS)
$288K
Median home value
16
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 28, 2024 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
| Aug 9, 2022 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jul 8, 2022 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 7, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Apr 7, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Cass County, Minnesota?
557 events are on record between 1959 and 2025, causing 14 direct deaths and $10.9M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Cass County?
Hail, with 263 recorded events — 47.2% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Cass County?
32 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 24 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Cass County?
16 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Cass County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Cass County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Cass County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 54 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Cass County, Minnesota severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Carver County 480
- Chippewa County 242
- Carlton County 267
- Chisago County 214
- Brown County 314
- Clay County 504
Cite this page
“Cass County, Minnesota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/minnesota/cass-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.