NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Breckenridge, MN
Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.
Data: NOAA NHC HURDAT2 and NOAA SPC tornado and hail reports, through 2025 · Updated
No tropical storm or hurricane has passed within 75 miles of Breckenridge, Minnesota since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 90 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 6 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 90
- EF3 or stronger
- 6
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
2 deaths in all
What the records show for Breckenridge
The highest rating among the 90 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4 or EF4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on August 7, 2010, came within 8 miles. The deadliest, an F4 on July 2, 1955, killed 2 people. Of the 90, 7 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 55 have come since 2000. June and July have had the most tornadoes, 28 each. The most recent tornado was on August 21, 2025. Breckenridge has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 55% of the 341 Minnesota cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 70 times since 1959, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Of the 341 Minnesota cities, 62% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Breckenridge.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Breckenridge
By decade
- 2020s7
- 2010s24(1 EF3+)
- 2000s24
- 1990s5
- 1980s8(1 EF3+)
- 1970s7
- 1960s6(1 EF3+)
- 1950s9(3 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 2, 1955 | F4 | 20 mi | 9.1 mi | 2 / 19 |
| Aug 7, 2010 | EF4 | 8 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 10, 1982 | F3 | 18 mi | 15 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 5, 1964 | F3 | 10 mi | 5.2 mi | 0 / 11 |
| Jul 2, 1955 | F3 | in town | 18.7 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jul 1, 1952 | F3 | 24 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 12, 2022 | EF2 | 12 mi | 9.77 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 4, 2014 | EF2 | 20 mi | 2.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 19, 2002 | F2 | 22 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 26, 1977 | F2 | 17 mi | 110.4 mi | 0 / 10 |
| Jul 13, 1974 | F2 | 23 mi | 6.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 25, 1960 | F2 | 22 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 90, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Breckenridge
The Storm Prediction Center has 70 hail reports within 10 miles of Breckenridge since 1959, made on 45 separate days. Of these, 44 were 1 inch across or larger, and 3 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on July 14, 1998. The most recent report is from June 28, 2025. August has the most reports, 25.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Breckenridge
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Rothsay, MN, 19 miles northeast of Breckenridge at 1,204 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 80°F and low of 60°F; January is the coolest, at 18°F and -1°F. June is the wettest at 3.9 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 0.6 inches; the year adds up to 24.8 inches over 53 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 5 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 171 nights a year. Snowfall averages 49.6 inches a year, most of it in January. That 24.8 inches is more than at 8 of the 124 Minnesota stations used on this site (6%). Fergus Falls, 23 miles east, has its own station (Fergus Falls, MN): 27.0 inches a year, 2.2 more than here, and a July average high of 81°F against 80°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 18 | -1 | 0.8 | 2 | 11.4 |
| Feb | 23 | 3 | 0.6 | 2 | 7.7 |
| Mar | 36 | 17 | 1.1 | 3 | 7.2 |
| Apr | 53 | 31 | 2.1 | 4 | 4.1 |
| May | 67 | 45 | 3.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 76 | 56 | 3.9 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 80 | 60 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 78 | 58 | 2.7 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 70 | 49 | 2.8 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 55 | 35 | 2.3 | 5 | 1.6 |
| Nov | 38 | 21 | 0.9 | 2 | 6.9 |
| Dec | 24 | 7 | 0.9 | 3 | 10.7 |
| Year | 52 | 32 | 24.8 | 53 | 49.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Rothsay, MN (1,204 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.
Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Breckenridge
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 86 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Breckenridge: 67 thunderstorm wind reports, 13 flash floods, 4 floods and 2 heavy rain events. They killed 0 people and injured 1, and the NWS estimated $1.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 100 mph, on July 14, 2010. June has had the most flash floods, 6 of 13. Of the 312 Minnesota cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 247 have had fewer than Breckenridge.
June 5, 1999: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Breckenridge — 1 injured, $75,000 damage.
July 14, 2010: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Breckenridge — $250,000 damage.
NWS: “Numerous large trees were snapped or uprooted at various locations along a roughly 3 mile wide path centered along MN Highway 210. Farm machinery was moved about, doors and roofing materials were torn off farm buildings and homes.”
June 13, 2017: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Breckenridge — $200,000 damage.
NWS: “A grain bin and building were damaged.”
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, events whose starting point is on record, 1996 to June 30, 2026. Damage is the NWS estimate in the dollars of the year, not insured losses, and NWS notes that some reports are unverified.
Flood insurance claims, disaster declarations and FEMA risk ratings
Flood insurance policyholders in Breckenridge's ZIP code 56520 have filed 472 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $7.3 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from Flooding in 1997: 391 claims (83% of all) and $7.1 million, then Severe flooding in 2001 with 19. 89% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 120 Minnesota cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 114 have fewer than Breckenridge.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Flooding1997 | 391 | $7.1 million |
| Severe flooding2001 | 19 | $9,088 |
Wilkin County, which includes Breckenridge, has been named in 25 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1966, 20 of them major disasters (by incident: 13 floods, 8 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 drought). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms and Flooding, on July 19, 2023. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Wilkin County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for hail and strong wind; Very Low for tornadoes, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $4.7 million a year, the 80th highest of 87 Minnesota counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $2.3 million (49%), is from inland flooding.
Claims: FEMA, OpenFEMA Dataset FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims – v3, summed over ZIP codes; payments in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Declarations: Disaster Declarations Summaries – v2, by county. Retrieved October 25, 2026. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
Risk ratings: FEMA, National Risk Index county table, December 2025 (v1.20), retrieved October 26, 2026; ratings compare counties nationwide, are meant for planning and are no substitute for a local risk assessment. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.
Cities near Breckenridge
- Wahpeton, ND7 mi
- Fergus Falls, MN23 mi
- Barnesville, MN27 mi
- Pelican Rapids, MN33 mi
- Horace, ND35 mi
- Battle Lake, MN40 mi
- Moorhead, MN42 mi
- Fargo, ND42 mi
- Glyndon, MN42 mi
- Dilworth, MN42 mi
- Hawley, MN42 mi
- West Fargo, ND45 mi
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