Minnewaukan’s biggest natural hazard is cold waves
Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Minnewaukan comes from cold waves, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 51 claims here since 1999. 2 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.
What stands out about Minnewaukan’s weather risks
Read from FEMA’s records below. The page puts what stands out first.
Does Minnewaukan flood? Sometimes: 51 flood claims since 1999
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Minnewaukan, from FEMA’s records.
- The Late spring storms10 claims · $1.4M
- The Severe flooding1 claim · $71K
Minnewaukan isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Benson County.What Minnewaukan faces
Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how it compares with the rest of the country.
Cold waves
Strong wind
Inland flooding
Wildfire
Ice storms
Hail
2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Minnewaukan
Disasters that paid out in Minnewaukan itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Minnewaukan) and its biggest flood years.
- 2011Flooding18 households applied for aid$11K aid approved20 flood claims paid that year
- 2009Severe Storms and Flooding21 households applied for aid$10K aid approved8 flood claims paid that year
Benson County has had 26 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.
Old photos of Minnewaukan after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Minnewaukan archive →How exposed is Minnewaukan?
FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings here to be higher than in 58% of U.S. communities, mostly from cold waves.
Rated higher than 1,453 of the 1,711 North Dakota towns we cover.
Minnewaukan is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.
Get ready for what Minnewaukan actually faces
A short kit for its top hazards, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Let faucets drip so pipes don’t freeze.
- Know where your water shutoff is.
- Never heat the house with the oven or a grill.
- Trim dead limbs over the house and driveway.
- Tie down trash cans and outdoor furniture.
- Stay clear of downed lines and call the utility.
- Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
- Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
- Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
- Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
- Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
- Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Most disasters here begin in March–April
The month each of Benson County’s 26 declared disasters began, since 1953.
What these numbers can and can’t tell you
- An average, not a forecast. FEMA’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 there, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings.
- Money that reached town. Flood claims are matched to Minnewaukan’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Minnewaukan.
- It follows property value. FEMA’s model weighs damage to buildings, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Minnewaukan.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
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. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. An average of past damage, not a forecast.