NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Lester Prairie, 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 Lester Prairie, Minnesota since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 103 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 5 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 103
- EF3 or stronger
- 5
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
5 deaths in all
What the records show for Lester Prairie
The highest rating among the 103 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on May 6, 1965, came within 16 miles. Of the 103, 5 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 44 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 30. The most recent tornado was on June 28, 2025. Lester Prairie has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 72% of the 341 Minnesota cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 125 times since 1985, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Lester Prairie has more hail reports within 10 miles than 68% of the 341 Minnesota cities.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Lester Prairie
By decade
- 2020s13
- 2010s17
- 2000s14
- 1990s27(2 EF3+)
- 1980s15
- 1970s5
- 1960s9(2 EF3+)
- 1950s3(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 6, 1965 | F4 | 16 mi | 12.3 mi | 3 / 175 |
| Jun 19, 1951 | F4 | 6 mi | 52.6 mi | 1 / 20 |
| Jul 1, 1997 | F3 | 17 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 16, 1992 | F3 | 13 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 8 |
| May 6, 1965 | F3 | in town | 15.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 6, 1965 | F2 | 10 mi | 11.2 mi | 1 / 175 |
| Jun 16, 1992 | F2 | 24 mi | 10 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 13, 1983 | F2 | 15 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 14, 1981 | F2 | 24 mi | 2.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 27, 1977 | F2 | 21 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 23, 1952 | F2 | 18 mi | 104.8 mi | 0 / 10 |
| Jun 28, 2025 | EF1 | 18 mi | 4.38 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 103, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Lester Prairie
The Storm Prediction Center has 125 hail reports within 10 miles of Lester Prairie since 1985, made on 69 separate days. Of these, 54 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 3 inches (tea cup size), was reported on 2 days, most recently July 27, 2016. The most recent report is from June 28, 2025. June has the most reports, 41.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Lester Prairie
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Hutchinson 1 N, MN, 15 miles west of Lester Prairie at 1,095 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 83°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 22°F and 5°F. August is the wettest at 4.8 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 0.6 inches; the year adds up to 29.9 inches over 55 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 10 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 162 nights a year. That 29.9 inches is more than at 54 of the 124 Minnesota stations used on this site (44%). Winsted, 5 miles north, has its own station (Dassel 3SE, MN): 28.9 inches a year, 1.0 less than here, and a July average high of 82°F against 83°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 22 | 5 | 0.6 | 2 |
| Feb | 27 | 9 | 0.7 | 2 |
| Mar | 40 | 23 | 1.3 | 4 |
| Apr | 56 | 36 | 2.2 | 5 |
| May | 69 | 48 | 4.0 | 8 |
| Jun | 79 | 59 | 4.5 | 8 |
| Jul | 83 | 63 | 3.9 | 6 |
| Aug | 81 | 60 | 4.8 | 6 |
| Sep | 74 | 52 | 3.0 | 5 |
| Oct | 58 | 38 | 2.5 | 5 |
| Nov | 41 | 25 | 1.5 | 3 |
| Dec | 27 | 12 | 0.9 | 3 |
| Year | 55 | 36 | 29.9 | 55 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Hutchinson 1 N, MN (1,095 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 Lester Prairie
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 145 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Lester Prairie: 125 thunderstorm wind reports, 8 flash floods, 7 heavy rain events, 3 floods and 2 lightning strikes. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $1.3 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 92 mph, on July 1, 1997. June has had the most flash floods, 5 of 8. Of the 312 Minnesota cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 204 have had fewer than Lester Prairie.
June 17, 2012: thunderstorm wind 4 miles from the centre of Lester Prairie — $300,000 damage.
NWS: “North of the city of New Germany, severe straight-line winds caused damage to five sheds, with two completely destroyed. In addition, three corn bins were damaged, one turned over, one was wrapped around a tree, and one damaged by another falling on it.”
July 1, 2011: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Lester Prairie — $250,000 damage.
NWS: “One half of a large barn was blown down southwest of New Germany, between County Road 30 and 33. In addition, several large trees were blown down near the same area.”
June 11, 2001: thunderstorm wind in Lester Prairie — $100,000 damage.
NWS: “Wind driven hail caused damage to houses and vehicles.”
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
McLeod County, which includes Lester Prairie, has been named in 18 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 15 of them major disasters (by incident: 9 floods, 5 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 drought). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms and Flooding, on June 28, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives McLeod County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail and strong wind; Relatively Low for inland flooding and heat waves; Very Low for lightning. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $17.4 million a year, the 36th highest of 87 Minnesota counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $7.1 million (41%), 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 Lester Prairie
- Winsted, MN5 mi
- Silver Lake, MN7 mi
- Mayer, MN8 mi
- Norwood Young America, MN9 mi
- Glencoe, MN9 mi
- Watertown, MN12 mi
- Howard Lake, MN13 mi
- Montrose, MN13 mi
- Waverly, MN13 mi
- Waconia, MN14 mi
- Cokato, MN15 mi
- St Bonifacius, MN15 mi
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