Natural hazards · Forest Lake

Forest Lake, MN natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Forest Lake comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Forest Lake?

Moderate

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Forest Lake to be higher than in 54% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and tornadoes.

Inland flooding55%Tornadoes15%Cold waves10%Strong wind10%Everything else10%

By hazard

What Forest Lake faces

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

Inland flooding

55% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 69% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Tornadoes

15% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 79% of U.S. places

Cold waves

10% of expected damage

Below average · higher than 25% of U.S. places

Recorded about 9 times a year in the area

Strong wind

10% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 97% of U.S. places

Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Lower here

HailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesLightningDrought

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingHurricanesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Forest Lake flood?

FEMA's records show no paid flood insurance claims in Forest Lake.

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Washington County.

What’s been done with FEMA grants

1storm safe rooms built

Disasters that hit Forest Lake

Federal disasters declared here

None of the disasters declared for Washington County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Forest Lake itself in FEMA’s records.

Brought FEMA money into Forest LakeDeclared for Washington County only

Washington County has had 15 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.

Around Forest Lake

Forest Lake and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Forest Lakemostly inland floodingModerate

Wyomingmostly inland floodingModerate

Hugomostly inland floodingModerate

Chisago Lakemostly inland floodingLow

Scandiamostly inland floodingLow

Columbusmostly inland floodingLow

Chisago Citymostly inland floodingLow

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. Forest Lake covers 5 census tracts, combined by population.

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

FEMA’s expected losses across Forest Lake total about $8.1M a year, counting buildings, people and crops.

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.