Chippewa County, Minnesota severe weather history spans 242 recorded events between 1955 and 2025. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 43.8% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,160 nationally and #73 in Minnesota.
242
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$7.3M
Property damage
The record
What the Chippewa County, Minnesota severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Chippewa County, Minnesota severe weather history averages 3.5 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 68 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 34 events fall before 1990 and 208 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $5.4M 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 Chippewa County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 106 | 0 | $15K | 3 | 1957–2025 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 90 | 0 | $1.2M | 70 | 1955–2025 |
| Tornado | 25 | 0 | $5.4M | F1 | 1968–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 7 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2020 |
| Flood | 5 | 0 | $420K | 0 | 2009–2023 |
| Heavy Rain | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2004–2012 |
| Flash Flood | 3 | 0 | $300K | 0 | 2001–2014 |
| Strong Wind | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–1997 |
Decade by decade
Chippewa County, Minnesota severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
28 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 28 touched down inside it and 0 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000-07-25 | EF4 | 1 | 15 | 9.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2022-05-30 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-09-19 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2015-05-16 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-09-12 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-09-12 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1999-07-27 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1993-05-07 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1988-08-07 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1986-07-26 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Numerous counties roads were flooded from snow melt and associated runoff along several tributaries of the Minnesota River, and the Minnesota River in Chippewa County. Monetary costs were based on FEMA, State, and Local assistance which includes the following categories; debris removal, emergency protective measures, road systems and bridges, water control facilities, utilities and parks.
There was a concentrated area of wind damage from the southeast portion of Montevideo, then northeast for a few miles over rural western Chippewa County. Several trees, sheds and barns were damaged, including major damage to an apartment garage in the City of Montevideo.
A tornado produced damage at a farm. A 100' x 70' long machine shed was destroyed when it was pushed off its foundation, with metal blown 1.5 miles downwind. Much of the equipment inside the shed was destroyed. A metal fence was blown down, and dozens of trees were broken. The tornado even clipped off some of the new soybeans that had emerged and were only one or two inches out of the ground.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
12,377
Population (ACS)
$156K
Median home value
21
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 19, 2023 | 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 |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Jun 12, 2019 | Flood | SEVERE WINTER STORM, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Chippewa County, Minnesota?
242 events are on record between 1955 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $7.3M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Chippewa County?
Hail, with 106 recorded events — 43.8% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Chippewa County?
28 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 28 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Chippewa County?
21 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Chippewa County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Chippewa County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Chippewa County as very low risk, placing it in the 37 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Chippewa 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
- Cass County 557
- Chisago County 214
- Carver County 480
- Clay County 504
- Carlton County 267
- Clearwater County 244
Cite this page
“Chippewa County, Minnesota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/minnesota/chippewa-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.