How Likely Is a Tornado in Martin County, MN?
Martin County, MN: what NOAA's tornado record says
Martin County has recorded 22 tornado touches in NOAA's 76-year database, a rate of roughly one every 3.5 years - our Moderate band. Put another way: Martin County sees more tornado activity than 54% of US counties. Minnesota has 87 counties in this dataset; Martin County ranks 57 of them by frequency.
Beyond the frequency band: violent history
19 weak and 3 significant tornadoes make up Martin County's 22-track record - none violent. NOAA has never logged an EF4 or EF5 crossing this county.
The dollar figure Martin County's rating leads to
Cost nationally: $2,890-$13,280, about $7,645 typical. Minnesota has no state rebate program confirmed here; FEMA's underlying 75% cost-share exists nationwide, but applying through a state program is what usually makes it real, and none was found for Minnesota this pass.
What a direct hit isn't required for
19,561 people live in Martin County, and a tornado outbreak's power loss usually reaches far more of Minnesota than the tracks themselves touch. A portable battery unit is the faster, no-fuel way to bridge that outage.
What this number is, and is not
One caveat before relying on Martin County's number: it is county-wide, and it covers about 712 square miles, so a single touch counts the same as one in a county a fraction of that size. Weaker pre-1990s tornadoes are also documented as undercounted in NOAA's own record. Martin County has about 19,561 residents.