Cass County, North Dakota severe weather history spans 1,139 recorded events between 1950 and 2025. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 43.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #91 nationally and #1 in North Dakota.
1,139
Recorded events
15
Direct deaths
117
Direct injuries
$281.3M
Property damage
The record
What the Cass County, North Dakota severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Cass County, North Dakota severe weather history averages 15.2 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 329 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 200 events fall before 1990 and 939 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, North Dakota record is tornado, responsible for 13 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $106.4M 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 Cass County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 494 | 0 | $34.0M | 4.5 | 1959–2025 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 418 | 0 | $98.0M | 96 | 1959–2025 |
| Tornado | 109 | 13 | $36.7M | F5 | 1950–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 50 | 0 | $106.4M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 34 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Flood | 24 | 1 | $6.2M | 0 | 1999–2024 |
| Heavy Rain | 6 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2011–2022 |
| Lightning | 4 | 1 | $30K | 0 | 1997–2008 |
Decade by decade
Cass County, North Dakota severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
103 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 95 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1957-06-20 | EF5 | 10 | 103 | 52.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-06-20 | EF5 | 3 | 0 | 12.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1973-06-15 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1956-08-30 | EF3 | 0 | 8 | 5.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-06-20 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 6.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-05-30 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 7.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-05-30 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 2011-05-30 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-07-04 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2010-07-26 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 13.8 mi | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Cass County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 21, 1957 | Tornado | 10 | 103 | $25.0M | |
| Jun 21, 2025 | Tornado | ELIZABETH | 3 | 0 | $0 |
| Jul 1, 1997 | Lightning | DAVENPORT | 1 | 2 | $0 |
| Apr 1, 2006 | Flood | COUNTYWIDE | 1 | 0 | $1.3M |
| Aug 30, 1956 | Tornado | 0 | 8 | $250K | |
| May 28, 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | COTTER | 0 | 2 | $10K |
| Sep 2, 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | BUFFALO | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jun 25, 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | ARGUSVILLE | 0 | 1 | $200K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
After 5 to 7 inches of rain fell across the West Fargo area, flash flooding occurred in low lying neighborhoods. The Meadow Ridge area suffered quite a bit of damage, with numerous basements flooded. Many streets and cars were also flooded.
A six mile stretch of high voltage power towers was crumpled by a combination of downburst winds and at least one tornado through Central Hill Township. At least 28 steel four pole towers, operated by Western Area Power Administration, were destroyed. One tower in adjacent Barnes County was also destroyed. Extensive crop damage occurred across Hill and Howes Townships.
The tornado plowed through wooden power poles and viciously ripped up mature trees over its damage path. The tornado also damaged a sturdy pole shed, where the sidewall was caved in and the roof and rafters were torn off. It tore the roof off and collapsed an older barn, then lifted and threw a well-built two car garage from its slab foundation. The tornado crumpled one steel, four footing, high voltage power tower. In combination with extreme downburst winds, the collapse of this first tower helped initiate the collapse of dozens more of these power towers. Peak winds were estimated at 130 mph.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Moderate
FEMA NRI risk rating
193,400
Population (ACS)
$298K
Median home value
35
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 11, 2025 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORM, TORNADOES, AND STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | DR |
| Feb 15, 2024 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | DR |
| Jul 9, 2020 | Flood | FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 1, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Jun 12, 2019 | Flood | FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Fargo 149
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Cass County, North Dakota?
1,139 events are on record between 1950 and 2025, causing 15 direct deaths and $281.3M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Cass County?
Hail, with 494 recorded events — 43.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Cass County?
103 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 95 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Cass County?
35 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 moderate risk, placing it in the 82 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Cass County, North Dakota 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
- Burleigh County 681
- Cavalier County 427
- Burke County 214
- Dickey County 294
- Bowman County 297
- Divide County 170
Cite this page
“Cass County, North Dakota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/north-dakota/cass-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.