NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Pelican Rapids, 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 Pelican Rapids, Minnesota since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 84 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 1 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 84
- EF3 or stronger
- 1
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
10 deaths in all
What the records show for Pelican Rapids
The strongest of the 84 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on June 20, 1957; its path came within 20 miles, and it killed 10 people. Of the 84, 7 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 55 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 32. The most recent tornado was on June 16, 2025. Of the 341 Minnesota cities on this site, 51% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Pelican Rapids. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 82 times since 1975, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 341 Minnesota cities, 52% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Pelican Rapids.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Pelican Rapids
By decade
- 2020s6
- 2010s14
- 2000s35
- 1990s4
- 1980s3
- 1970s8
- 1960s7
- 1950s7(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 20, 1957 | F5 | 20 mi | 52.4 mi | 10 / 103 |
| Jun 24, 2022 | EF2 | 25 mi | 30.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 4, 2014 | EF2 | 12 mi | 2.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 7, 2007 | EF2 | 4 mi | 7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 29, 2005 | F2 | 17 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 20, 2005 | F2 | 23 mi | 4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 5, 2004 | F2 | 19 mi | 4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 19, 2002 | F2 | 12 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 26, 1977 | F2 | 20 mi | 110.4 mi | 0 / 10 |
| Jul 13, 1974 | F2 | 17 mi | 6.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 5, 1964 | F2 | 4 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 13 |
| Aug 25, 1960 | F2 | 20 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 84, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Pelican Rapids
The Storm Prediction Center has 82 hail reports within 10 miles of Pelican Rapids since 1975, made on 61 separate days. Of these, 50 were 1 inch across or larger, and 5 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on September 4, 2014. The most recent report is from June 16, 2025. July has the most reports, 28.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Pelican Rapids
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Rothsay, MN, 14 miles southwest of Pelican Rapids 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%). Detroit Lakes, 17 miles northeast, has its own station (Detroit Lakes 1 NNE, MN): 29.6 inches a year, 4.8 more than here, and a July average high of 79°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 Pelican Rapids
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 61 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Pelican Rapids: 53 thunderstorm wind reports, 5 flash floods and 3 floods. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $405,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 86 mph, on July 4, 2018. July has had the most flash floods, 3 of 5. Of the 312 Minnesota cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 132 have had fewer than Pelican Rapids.
July 4, 2010: flash flood 7 miles from the centre of Pelican Rapids — $300,000 damage.
NWS: “Water covered county roads in the Dent area due to the heavy rainfall.”
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 Pelican Rapids's ZIP code 56572 have filed 10 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1985, and were paid $35,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 10% 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, 0 have fewer than Pelican Rapids.
Otter Tail County, which includes Pelican Rapids, has been named in 17 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 14 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 floods, 5 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 drought). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 7, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Otter Tail County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for strong wind; Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail and inland flooding; Relatively Low for lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $37.7 million a year, the 14th highest of 87 Minnesota counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $21.2 million (56%), 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 Pelican Rapids
- Detroit Lakes, MN17 mi
- Barnesville, MN17 mi
- Lake Park, MN18 mi
- Hawley, MN21 mi
- Fergus Falls, MN23 mi
- Frazee, MN23 mi
- Perham, MN24 mi
- Battle Lake, MN28 mi
- Glyndon, MN30 mi
- Breckenridge, MN33 mi
- New York Mills, MN33 mi
- Henning, MN35 mi
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