Natural hazards · Brownsville

Brownsville, MN natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Brownsville comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2011. 1 federal disaster brought FEMA money into town.

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 · OpenFEMA claims, aid & declarations

Expected damage

How exposed is Brownsville?

Very high

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Brownsville to be higher than in 84% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding69%Cold waves15%Tornadoes7%Everything else10%

By hazard

What Brownsville faces

Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how that compares with the rest of the country.

Inland flooding

69% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 95% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Cold waves

15% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 58% of U.S. places

Recorded about 8 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

7% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 81% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 16 years in the area

Lower here

HurricanesHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightningDrought

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.

Flood insurance claims

Does Brownsville flood?

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Brownsville, from FEMA’s records.

1paid claims since 2011

$823paid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

20112026

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

No community discount. Brownsville isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Houston County.

Disasters that hit Brownsville

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money here

Disasters the President declared that paid out in Brownsville itself: aid to households, or repair grants to the City of Brownsville.

Brought FEMA money into BrownsvilleDeclared for Houston County only

2007

Severe Storms and Flooding

54 households applied for aid $215K aid approved $316K to the City of Brownsville for repairs

Houston County has had 19 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.

About these numbers

How to read this page

An average, not a forecastFEMA’s National Risk Index estimates the damage 18 kinds of natural hazards cause in a typical year, from decades of records and models. A quiet decade can follow a bad year.

Compared by rate“Higher than N%” compares yearly damage as a share of what’s here, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings. Brownsville is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Brownsville’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Brownsville. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025); OpenFEMA: NFIP redacted claims, multiple-loss properties, community status book and residential penetration rates, housing assistance (owners and renters), public assistance funded projects, hazard mitigation properties and disaster declarations. Census tracts: U.S. Census Bureau.