Koochiching County, Minnesota severe weather history spans 269 recorded events between 1955 and 2025. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 54.6% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,971 nationally and #63 in Minnesota.
269
Recorded events
2
Direct deaths
5
Direct injuries
$5.8M
Property damage
The record
What the Koochiching County, Minnesota severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Koochiching County, Minnesota severe weather history averages 3.8 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 1990s, with 63 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 88 events fall before 1990 and 181 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Koochiching County, Minnesota record is tornado, responsible for 2 direct deaths. The costliest is hail, with $3.0M in reported property damage. In total, 6 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Koochiching County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 147 | 0 | $3.0M | 3 | 1959–2023 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 104 | 0 | $8K | 70 | 1957–2025 |
| Tornado | 6 | 2 | $300K | F2 | 1955–1993 |
| Lightning | 5 | 0 | $26K | 0 | 1997–2005 |
| Flood | 5 | 0 | $2.4M | 0 | 2014–2022 |
| Flash Flood | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2002–2010 |
Decade by decade
Koochiching County, Minnesota severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
8 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 8 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973-09-01 | EF2 | 0 | 5 | 54.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1955-09-17 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1993-08-09 | EF0 | 2 | 0 | 1.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1993-06-08 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1993-06-08 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1985-06-08 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1981-07-16 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 2.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1956-06-23 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Koochiching County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 9, 1993 | Tornado | to 4 E | 2 | 0 | $50K |
| Sep 1, 1973 | Tornado | 0 | 5 | $250K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A tornado touched down to the southwest of a trailer home near the town of Littlefork. The tornado lifted the mobile home and deposited it about 0.25 mile to the northeast. Two people were killed and the mobile home was destroyed. Damage was estimated at $20,000. (M51M, F46M)
Above normal snowfall for the 2021-2022 season was observed across northern portions of Koochiching and St. Louis counties and much of that remained on the ground into April. Heavy rainfall then fell on top of that above normal snowpack at the end of April and sent abnormally high amounts of runoff into the Rainy River Basin leading to rises on Rainy Lake. International Falls experienced their wettest April on record, helping to set the stage for the flooding. By June 15th, the level of Rainy Lake reached 1113.2 feet which was 22 inches above the 2014 peak level and 2.5 inches above the all-time record set in 1950. Having crested and setting a new all-time high, the lake level fell over the remainder of the month to 1112.4 feet (13 inches above 2014 peak and slightly below the 1950 record) by the start of July. The high lake levels led to extensive damage to properties adjacent to the water along with damage to docks and other infrastructure. Lake levels would continue to fall into July.
Above normal snowfall for the 2021-2022 season was observed across northern portions of Koochiching and St. Louis counties and much of that remained on the ground into April. Heavy rainfall then fell on top of that above normal snowpack at the end of April and sent abnormally high amounts of runoff into the Rainy River Basin leading to rises on Namakan Lake and Kabetogama Lake. International Falls experienced their wettest April on record, helping to set the stage for the flooding. By the end of May, the level of Rainy Lake reached 1112.4 feet which was 12 inches above the 2014 peak level and 7 inches below the all-time record set in 1950. The high lake levels led to extensive damage to properties adjacent to the water along with damage to docks and other infrastructure. Lake levels would continue to rise into June.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
11,833
Population (ACS)
$157K
Median home value
14
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 13, 2022 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, 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 |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Sep 5, 2018 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Koochiching County, Minnesota?
269 events are on record between 1955 and 2025, causing 2 direct deaths and $5.8M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Koochiching County?
Hail, with 147 recorded events — 54.6% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Koochiching County?
8 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 8 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Koochiching County?
14 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Koochiching County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Koochiching County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Koochiching County as very low risk, placing it in the 31 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Koochiching 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
- Kittson County 390
- Lac qui Parle County 288
- Kandiyohi County 472
- Lake County 161
- Kanabec County 180
- Lake of the Woods County 220
Cite this page
“Koochiching County, Minnesota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/minnesota/koochiching-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.