144
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$221K
Property damage
Hail in Cottonwood County, Minnesota: 144 recorded events between 1956 and 2026. The strongest on record measured 3. That places the county #969 nationally and #48 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Hail in Cottonwood County, Minnesota: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for hail in Cottonwood County is the 2010s, when 47 of the county's 144 recorded events were logged. Comparing decades is useful for spotting active periods, but the earliest years are thin because systematic reporting for this hazard began later.
Within the Cottonwood County archive, hail makes up 39.9% of all recorded severe weather across 9 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #969 for this hazard and #48 within Minnesota, putting it in the 68.7 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
May is the peak month for hail in Cottonwood County with 37 recorded events, while Jan is the quietest. Seasonality here is a property of the archive as much as the climate: reports cluster where population and spotter networks are densest.
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 13, 2026 | WINDOM | 1.25 | $0 |
| Apr 13, 2026 | MOUNTAIN LAKE | 1.75 | $0 |
| Apr 13, 2026 | WINDOM | 1.25 | $0 |
| Apr 13, 2026 | MOUNTAIN LAKE | 2 | $0 |
| Apr 13, 2026 | DELFT | 1.5 | $0 |
| Apr 13, 2026 | DELFT | 1 | $0 |
| Apr 13, 2026 | WINDOM MUNI ARPT | 2 | $0 |
| Apr 13, 2026 | WINDOM | 2 | $0 |
| Apr 13, 2026 | WINDOM MUNI ARPT | 2 | $0 |
| Sep 22, 2025 | WINDOM MUNI ARPT | 1 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Cottonwood County
- Thunderstorm Wind 128
- Flood 43
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Large hail severely damaged crops, especially corn. Many fields were deemed a total loss. The wind blown hail also damaged vehicles, cracked windows, and damaged the siding of homes. At least one greenhouse was heavily damaged. The hail was blown into drifts several inches high in many places.
Strong winds contributed to a period of wind-driven hail from dime to quarter size. Soybeans were stripped to stubble and leaves ripped off trees. A damage path varied from one to two miles in width where crop losses were nearly total. The duration of the event was around 8 minutes.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many hail events are on record in Cottonwood County, Minnesota?
144 hail events are recorded in Cottonwood County between 1956 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest hail recorded in Cottonwood County?
The strongest hail on record in Cottonwood County measured 3.
Where does the hail data for Cottonwood County come from?
All events come from the NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database, the federal public-domain archive of severe weather reports. Dates are UTC, damage is as reported and not inflation-adjusted, and the most recent entries may still be revised.
Cite this page
“Hail in Cottonwood County, Minnesota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/minnesota/cottonwood-county/hail/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.