NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Mountain Lake, 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 Mountain Lake, Minnesota since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 69 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 69
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
1 deaths in all
What the records show for Mountain Lake
The strongest of the 69 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on March 29, 1998; its path came within 10 miles, and it killed 1 person. Of the 69, 4 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 41 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 24. The most recent tornado was on August 5, 2024. Of the 341 Minnesota cities on this site, 67% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Mountain Lake. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 50 times since 1961, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Of the 341 Minnesota cities, 84% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Mountain Lake.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Mountain Lake
By decade
- 2020s9
- 2010s15
- 2000s17(1 EF3+)
- 1990s7(1 EF3+)
- 1980s8
- 1970s5
- 1960s5
- 1950s3
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 29, 1998 | F4 | 10 mi | 73.5 mi | 1 / 19 |
| Aug 1, 2006 | F3 | 11 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 16, 1992 | F2 | 24 mi | 7.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 21, 1981 | F2 | 20 mi | 54.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 9, 1977 | F2 | 12 mi | 5.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 14, 1976 | F2 | 4 mi | 13.5 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Jul 16, 1963 | F2 | 11 mi | 5.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 18, 1962 | F2 | 11 mi | 42.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 23, 1960 | F2 | 23 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 23, 1952 | F2 | 13 mi | 104.8 mi | 0 / 10 |
| Aug 5, 2024 | EF1 | 12 mi | 2.26 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 11, 2022 | EF1 | 21 mi | 0.88 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 69, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Mountain Lake
The Storm Prediction Center has 50 hail reports within 10 miles of Mountain Lake since 1961, made on 40 separate days. Of these, 30 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on July 4, 1961. The most recent report is from September 21, 2025. July has the most reports, 15.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Mountain Lake
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Windom, MN, 10 miles southwest of Mountain Lake at 1,384 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 84°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 25°F and 8°F. June is the wettest at 4.7 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 0.8 inches; the year adds up to 31.8 inches over 62 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 13 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 162 nights a year. Snowfall averages 43.5 inches a year, most of it in February. That 31.8 inches is more than at 76 of the 124 Minnesota stations used on this site (61%). Saint James, 15 miles east, has its own station (St James Wwtp, MN): 33.1 inches a year, 1.3 more than here, and a July average high of 83°F against 84°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 25 | 8 | 0.9 | 3 | 8.4 |
| Feb | 30 | 12 | 0.8 | 3 | 9.0 |
| Mar | 43 | 24 | 1.8 | 4 | 7.3 |
| Apr | 58 | 36 | 3.2 | 7 | 4.2 |
| May | 71 | 48 | 4.5 | 9 | 0.1 |
| Jun | 81 | 59 | 4.7 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 84 | 63 | 3.9 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 81 | 61 | 3.7 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 75 | 52 | 3.2 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 61 | 39 | 2.5 | 5 | 0.9 |
| Nov | 44 | 25 | 1.5 | 3 | 5.2 |
| Dec | 30 | 14 | 1.1 | 4 | 8.4 |
| Year | 57 | 37 | 31.8 | 62 | 43.5 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Windom, MN (1,384 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 Mountain Lake
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 45 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Mountain Lake: 38 thunderstorm wind reports, 3 flash floods, 3 floods and 1 heavy rain event. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $5.2 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 85 mph, on June 8, 2023.
September 23, 2010: flood 8 miles from the centre of Mountain Lake — $3.9 million damage.
NWS: “Numerous roads were closed due to excessive rainfall that fell on September 22nd and 23th. The major areal flooding didn't recede until late Saturday when most of the small streams and creeks had crested and only mainstem rivers remained flooded.”
June 27, 2003: thunderstorm wind in Mountain Lake — $1.0 million damage.
NWS: “Thunderstorm winds caused widespread tree damage, including numerous trees blown down. Falling trees damaged roofs of houses and destroyed the topper of a pickup truck, and severely damaged another pickup.”
July 14, 1998: thunderstorm wind in Mountain Lake — $150,000 damage.
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
Cottonwood County, which includes Mountain Lake, has been named in 17 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 6 floods, 6 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 Cottonwood County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hail and strong wind; Relatively Low for tornadoes and heat waves; Very Low for inland flooding and lightning. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $8.7 million a year, the 65th highest of 87 Minnesota counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $3.4 million (39%), 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 Mountain Lake
- Windom, MN11 mi
- Saint James, MN15 mi
- Springfield, MN21 mi
- Jackson, MN22 mi
- Lakefield, MN24 mi
- Truman, MN25 mi
- Madelia, MN26 mi
- Sleepy Eye, MN26 mi
- Fairmont, MN31 mi
- Fulda, MN33 mi
- New Ulm, MN34 mi
- Spirit Lake, IA37 mi
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