733 flood insurance claims·$11.1M paid·4 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 Mower 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.
River flooding and flash flooding dominate the flood profile of Mower County, MN, supported by over the last 30 years by 52 recorded flood events, resulting in 1 death, alongside 33 flash flood events. Recent activity demonstrates this risk, such as in August 2025 when heavy rain brought minor river flooding along the Cedar River and on both Turtle and Dobbins Creeks. Repeated rounds of heavy rainfall also pushed the Cedar River at Lansing to minor flood stage in June 2025.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that properties located in FEMA Zone A have experienced the highest concentration of risk by far, accounting for 622 claims with an average payout of $16,615 and an average recorded water depth of 12 inches. Additional claims have occurred in Zone X (65 claims, averaging $18,380 and 16 inches of water), Zone X Shaded (23 claims, averaging $14,107 and 3 inches of water), Zone X Unshaded (12 claims, averaging $17,745 and 10 inches of water), and unknown zones (11 claims, averaging $7,496 and 4 inches of water). Homeowners and real estate professionals near rivers and within designated high-risk zones should pay the closest attention to these hazards.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
5% of Mower County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
657 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 12 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 1978, with 168 claims and $1.2M paid, the year of Severe Storms, Flooding, Hail & Tornadoes.
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.
39 NOAA storm reports from Mower County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Minnesota flood stories →
16 federal disaster declarations since 1965, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jun 16, 2024 |
| Severe Winter Storm, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Mar 12, 2019 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Sep 22, 2010 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jun 6, 2008 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Sep 14, 2004 |
| Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, And Tornadoes | Mar 23, 2001 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | May 17, 2000 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
85 since 1996: 33 flash floods and 52 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Jun 26, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Aug 18, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Aug 17, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Jun 16, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 22, 2024 | $20,000 |
| Flood | Jun 22, 2024 | $150,000 |
| Flood | Jun 22, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 22, 2024 | $10,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Jun 26, 2025. Repeated rounds of heavy rainfall through the end of June resulted in the Cedar River at Lansing to reaching minor flood stage.
Flood · Aug 18, 2025. Heavy rain during the middle of August resulted in minor river flooding along the Cedar River and on both Turtle and Dobbins Creeks.
Flood · Aug 17, 2025. Heavy rain during the middle of August resulted in minor river flooding along the Cedar River and on both Turtle and Dobbins Creeks.
Flood · Jun 16, 2025. Repeated rounds of heavy rainfall through the middle of June resulted in the Cedar River at Lansing reaching minor flood stage.
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 Mower 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.