46 flood insurance claims·$179,971 paid·6 federal flood & hurricane disasters
Share of the whole county outline, rivers and lakes included; parts FEMA hasn’t mapped count as zero.
Shaded areas are FEMA’s mapped flood hazard zones in and around Benton County, Minnesota. Zoomed out they are simplified; at street level the map switches to FEMA’s exact layer. Tap anywhere to check that spot, or search an address above.
7% of Benton County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
42 NFIP claims with a recorded rated flood zone, 1978 to date. The zone is the one FEMA used to rate that policy, which may not match today’s map. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 4 inches.
Drawn to scale against an 80-inch door. Even a few inches soaks flooring, the bottom of the drywall and anything plugged in near the floor.
Average of the depths reported on claims (zero and implausible values left out); FEMA’s record doesn’t say exactly where each depth was measured. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
The worst year was 1997, with 24 claims and $99,809 paid, the year of Severe Winter Storms and Severe Flooding, High Winds,severe Storms.
Bar height is scaled by square root so ordinary years stay visible next to the worst one. NFIP claims by year of loss. Source: OpenFEMA.
4 NOAA storm reports from Benton County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Minnesota flood stories →
13 federal disaster declarations since 1965, 6 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Jun 20, 2013 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, And Tornadoes | Mar 23, 2001 |
| Severe Flooding, High Winds,severe Storms | Mar 21, 1997 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Jan 3, 1997 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Hail & Tornadoes | Jul 8, 1978 |
| Drought | Jun 17, 1976 |
| Severe Storms & Flooding | Aug 1, 1972 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
12 since 1996: 6 flash floods and 6 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Aug 29, 2016 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 11, 2016 | — |
| Flood | Mar 19, 2010 | — |
| Flood | Oct 4, 2005 | — |
| Flash Flood | Oct 4, 2005 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 10, 2002 | $100,000 |
| Flash Flood | Apr 22, 2001 | $500,000 |
| Flash Flood | Apr 7, 2001 | $3.0M |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Aug 29, 2016. The late afternoon of Monday, August 29th, a line of thunderstorms developed in central Minnesota, north of Mora. These storms slowly moved southward across Mille Lacs County and trained from west to east during the evening. Rainfall rates were nearly 1-2 inches per hour, which total around 4-6 inches across portions of Benton and Mille Lacs counties by the late evening. The worst area was near Milaca which had fl…
Flash Flood · Jul 11, 2016. The morning of Monday, July 11th, two waves of thunderstorms moved across west central and central Minnesota. Very heavy rainfall and isolated hail occurred with the main area of storms. But these storms also produced a wide area of one half to two inches of rain by sunrise. ||The morning two events set the stage for flooding in central Minnesota as several additional waves of thunderstorms developed during the af…
Flood · Mar 19, 2010. Accumulating snowfall across the Upper Midwest and Northern Plains was extensive during the 2009/2010 winter with snowfall water equivalent amounts across the Minnesota River Valley as high as six inches. Across the Mississippi River Valley and the Crow, snowfall water equivalent amounts were between three and five inches. ||The winter had very little melting on the snow cover and therefore, once temperatures in M…
Flash Flood · Apr 22, 2001. Two to four inches rain fell on saturated ground. The most severe damage occured in Santiago (Sherburne County), where a dike along County Road 11 gave way and allowed water to come crashing into town. About one dozen homes and businesses were flooded and evacuations were necessary. Other damage included flooded basements in Foley (Benton County) and Milaca (Mille Lacs County). County officials reported roads…
National Weather Service narratives, lightly trimmed. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Every colour on the map above is a place on this drawing: where the ground sits relative to the flood FEMA plans for.
If a building in Benton County is in a high-risk zone (A or V) and its mortgage comes from a federally regulated or insured lender, or is federally backed, flood insurance is required.
Outside those zones it is optional, and often worth having: from 2014 to 2024 nearly one-third of NFIP claims came from outside the high-risk Special Flood Hazard Area. Since Risk Rating 2.0, NFIP premiums are set for each building, so the only reliable price is a quote: FloodSmart.gov or a local agent.