Dodge County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Dodge County: 0.
2. Weak tornadoes were under-recorded before Doppler radar coverage became national in the early 1990s, so earlier decades read low. Ratings use the Fujita scale before February 2007 and the Enhanced Fujita scale after.

Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, 1950 to 2025.

Smoke overhead

1. A smoke day is a date on which a smoke plume traced by NOAA Hazard Mapping System analysts from satellite imagery covered this place's point (the county's population centre or the city centre). Counts here are of medium or heavy smoke. Since 2018 analysts have often drawn light smoke as one area over most of the continent, so light-smoke counts are not comparable from year to year. The plumes show smoke anywhere in the air above, not air quality at the ground, and smoke hidden by cloud is missed.

NOAA Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, 2011 to 2026, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Claims by ZIP code

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).

OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026. NOAA Storm Events through 2026.

River crests

The National Weather Service sets flood stages for 1 gauge here but lists no crests for it.

River gauges

1. Crests are the highest and the recent crests the National Weather Service lists for each river gauge in the county that has a flood stage, not every flood. Flood categories use each gauge's current flood stages; crests from before levees, dams or channel changes may not be comparable. Crests measured on an old datum are left out of the rankings.

NOAA National Water Prediction Service gauge records, retrieved October 30, 2026.

1. The Palmer Drought Severity Index is computed by NOAA each month from the county's average temperature and precipitation, relative to the county's own climate. Zero is normal; -3 or lower is severe drought and -4 or lower extreme drought. It describes the long-term balance of moisture, not water supply or crop losses.

NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, 1895 to September 2026, issued October 6, 2026.

1. Earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more in the USGS Comprehensive Catalog since 1900. Within 50 miles means the epicentre lies within 50 miles of the county boundary (or inside the county).
2. Small earthquakes were under-recorded before the modern seismic networks of the 1970s and are still missed in remote areas, so early decades read low. Magnitudes are as the catalogue reports them and mix scales (moment, local and body-wave).

USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog, 1900 to present, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Mapped landslides

Mapped by USGS MN (12).

1. Landslides mapped in the USGS compilation of landslide inventories across the United States (version 3.0, 2025), rated probable or better. The compilation joins inventories made by federal and state agencies for different purposes and areas, so the number mapped in a county reflects how closely it has been surveyed as much as how often its slopes fail. An area with few records may simply not have been mapped. Deaths are as recorded in the inventories; a slide listed in two inventories is counted once.

USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0, retrieved October 27, 2026.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. May 19, 1996Thunderstorm Wind$8.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Two semitrailers damaged. Garages damaged. Estimated windspeed.Damage estimate for entire county.

2. Sep 23, 2010Flood$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Rivers, creeks, and streams as well as low-lying areas throughout the county were flooded due to very heavy rainfall. At least 20 roads were closed across the county, while a few bridges were damaged and needed reconstruction. Specific road closures included State Highway 56, State Highway 24 as the Middle Fork of the Zumbro River flooded, and County Road 7. One home was destroyed, 4 others had major damage, and 57 others reported minor damage.

3. Apr 10, 2019Winter Weather, Dodge$750,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   COOP and volunteer snow observers reported that around 5 inches of snow fell across Dodge County. In addition to the snow, a period of sleet and freezing rain occurred that coated exposed surfaces with a glaze of ice. With the glaze of ice, some power poles and lines were brought down across the southern part of the county by the strong winds causing around 4,000 people to lose power. At least three county roads were closed because of downed power lines. A countywide state of emergency was declared with shelters opened for those without power.

4. Aug 19, 2007Flood$600,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Law enforcement officials reported some roads washed out or still under water.

5. Sep 23, 2010Flash Flood$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Many roads and culverts across the county were washed out.

6. Jun 16, 2014Flash Flood$413,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Runoff from heavy rain caused numerous streams across Dodge County to go out of their banks. The subsequent flooding damaged several roads with county engineers identifying 75 locations across the county that would need to be repaired.

7. Jun 6, 2006Lightning$400,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Lightning struck the steeple of a church building, causing a fire, which eventually burned the entire structure to the ground. A firefighter was seriously injured when a wall collapsed on him.

8. May 5, 2012Lightning$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Lightning struck a tower located next to a house with the power surge traveling through some cables to enter the house. The house, located north of Dodge Center, did not immediately catch on fire, but by the time the fire was reported and fire fighters arrived, the attic was fully engulfed in flames. The house is considered a total loss.

9. Jun 15, 2012Lightning$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Two buildings and around 200 turkeys were destroyed in an early morning fire started by lightning. Four fire departments responded to the blaze and needed four hours to extinguish the blaze.

10. Jul 24, 2009Hail$222,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    A cluster of severe thunderstorms was generated ahead of an approaching cold front during the morning of July 24. These storms produced hail up to 2 inches in diameter, as reported by storm spotters, law enforcement officials, emergency managers and the public.

1. Storm Events records before 1996 cover only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail. Damage figures are as reported by the National Weather Service at the time, not adjusted for inflation.

NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 1950 to 2026, issued October 26, 2026.

All-time high

108°FJul 14, 1936

All-time low

−40°FJan 30, 1951

Warmest night

85°FJul 3, 1911

Coldest day

−22°FJan 6, 1912

Wettest day

7.47 inJul 11, 1981

Snowiest day

19.8 inMar 18, 2005

Hottest year

2012mean 50.3°F

Coldest year

1917mean 40.6°F

Wettest year

201955.16 in

Driest year

191011.86 in

Snowiest season

86.8 in2018-19

Station Rochester International Airport (USW00014925), 1,306 ft elevation, 17.9 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1893 to October 26, 2026; 100.0% of days in the last 30 years are complete. Records at a single station can differ from a city’s official threaded record, which may combine several stations.

NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily.

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).

OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, retrieved October 30, 2026. Statewide declarations are not listed.

Neighbouring counties

• Tornadoes NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, through 2025.
• Tropical cyclones NOAA National Hurricane Center HURDAT2 (Atlantic; Northeast and Central Pacific), through 2025.
• Wildfire USGS/USFS Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity, through 2026.
• Storm events NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, through 2026.
• Flood insurance OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026.
• Declarations OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Weather records NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily, station USW00014925.
• River crests NOAA National Weather Service, National Water Prediction Service river gauges, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Drought NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, through September 2026.
• Smoke NOAA NESDIS Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Landslides USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0 (2025).
• Earthquakes USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat), retrieved October 30, 2026.

Joins, thresholds and known limits are set out in the methodology. Found an error? Report it. Page built October 30, 2026.