Murray County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Murray County: 1.
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

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.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Apr 9, 2013Winter Storm, Murray$10.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   An extended period of precipitation began with freezing rain quickly producing heavy ice accumulations, ranging up to a half inch. The precipitation then changed to sleet and then snow, with sleet and snow accumulations reaching 9.4 inches at Slayton. Many branches, limbs, whole trees, and power lines were downed by the weight of ice and accompanying wind. Both urban areas and rural electric cooperatives suffered major power line damage. Trees and tree debris blocked many roads, and damaged several vehicles and homes. Major power outages were reported, affecting thousands of people. The winter precipitation made travel impossible in many areas, resulting in schools and businesses…

2. Nov 14, 1996Ice Storm, Murray$2.5 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   An ice storm consisting of several periods of freezing rain caused widespread damage to power lines and poles, and to trees. Power lines snapped, cable wires were ripped down, and tree debris littered and blocked some roads. Thousands lost power, some for 5 days. Travel was curtailed by icy surfaces and there were numerous accidents, although no serious injuries were reported. The ice storm was described as the worst in 40 years in the Worthington area. Many small farm structures were damaged. A 600 foot radio tower in Worthington was toppled. Schools and business were forced to close. Damage continued after the ice storm ended, including some damage occurring when ice melted…

3. Jun 21, 2024Flood$2.3 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Rainfall amounts across Murray County from June 20-22 ranged from 4 to 8 inches. This rainfall resulted in overland flooding and major flooding along the West Fork Des Moines River. ||County-wide, 132 homes were damaged, three of which were declared destroyed. Many homes in the cities of Slayton and Fulda reported wastewater backup in their basements. Numerous roads and culverts were damaged with State Highway 30 closed at one point between Dovray and Westbrook. Preliminary assessments estimate loss to private property to be near 1 million dollars and 1.3 million dollars to public infrastructure. ||The majority of overland flooding subsided by June 23, but river flooding continued…

4. Apr 11, 2019Blizzard, Murray$648,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Blizzard conditions led to a shutdown of government offices and schools, and travel was not recommended with many roads closed due to the widespread whiteout conditions. Storm-total snowfall from 4 to 10 inches occurred, with 8.0 inches at Lake Wilson and 7.6 inches 4 miles northwest of Currie. With winds gusting at times from 40 to 50 mph, many areas had snow drifts of several feet, making roads impassable. Ice accumulation from one-quarter to one-third of an inch occurred, and helped to produce scattered power outages as snowfall and wind increased. Highway 59 and 30 were both closed on April 11 and early April 12 due to power lines down on the roadway. Damage costs are rough…

5. Apr 1, 2019Flood$600,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Runoff from occasional precipitation in late March and April maintained significant flooding of agricultural and pasture lands near the Des Moines River. The Des Moines River near Avoca (gage site AVOM5) crested twice at moderate flood stage during the month. The first crest was at 2.14 feet above flood stage on April 1. The second crest occurred on April 19 at 2.53 feet above flood stage. Moderate flooding continued at the end of the month.

6. Jun 15, 2004Flash Flood$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Rainfall of 2 to 6 inches over the northern and eastern parts of Murray County flooded numerous roads, and washed out some township roads. Residents in the Lake Shetek area were especially affected, with high water flooding roads to many homes. At least 50 thousand acres of cropland were flooded, with some crops washed away completely. The amount of crop damage was not known, due to the uncertainties in both crop recovery and in the ability to replant. Other lowlands were flooded, including a golf course in Slayton.

7. Mar 13, 2019Flood$273,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Flooding resulted in extensive damage to public infrastructure including numerous county and township roads, culverts, and some bridges. The property damage costs include estimates for public property losses.

8. Jun 22, 1997Thunderstorm Wind$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Thunderstorm winds caused tree damage and blew over a garage in Slayton, destroyed boat lifts and 2 trailers on the east side of Lake Shetek, and caused tree and power line damage at Fulda.

9. Aug 17, 2019Tornado$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The tornado formed around 2 miles west-southwest of Hadley, moving northeast through a farmstead shortly after touchdown and damaging trees and partially removing a roof from a metal outbuilding. After crossing Minnesota Highway 30, the tornado struck another farm, causing destruction of a barn, and resulting in damage to the house including blowing in a door and driving a 2x4 through the siding. The tornado reached Hadley three minutes after touchdown. Two garages were destroyed in town, along with damage to numerous trees. One final structure was grazed by the tornado just northeast of Hadley, blowing in the door and damaging the roof of a metal outbuilding. The tornado lifted…

10. Jun 11, 2008Tornado$100,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    A tornado blew the roof off a house, collapsed a wall in the house, and shifted the house off its foundation. A woman taking shelter in a closet was injured. On the same farmstead, the tornado also destroyed two sheds and caused minor damage to another house and two outbuildings. The tornado carried some debris from the farm over a mile. The tornado also caused extensive tree damage.

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

105°FJun 21, 1988

All-time low

−33°F2 times, most recently Jan 3, 2010

Warmest night

80°FAug 23, 2023

Coldest day

−16°FDec 23, 1983

Wettest day

4.40 in2 times, most recently Sep 23, 2010

Snowiest day

18.0 inMar 2, 2007

Hottest year

1987mean 49.5°F

Coldest year

2019mean 40.3°F

Wettest year

199347.75 in

Driest year

197613.32 in

Snowiest season

85.9 in1983-84

Station Lake Wilson (USC00214534), 1,653 ft elevation, 10.4 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1973 to October 24, 2026; 96.6% 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 USC00214534.
• 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.
• 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.