How Likely Is a Tornado in Renville County, MN?
How likely is a tornado in Renville County, MN?
Renville County has recorded 30 tornado touches in NOAA's 76-year database, a rate of roughly one every 2.5 years - our Elevated band. Put another way: Renville County sees more tornado activity than 69% of US counties. Within Minnesota alone, Renville County ranks 30 of 87 counties for tornado frequency.
Beyond the frequency band: violent history
21 weak and 7 significant tornadoes make up Renville County's 30-track record - none violent. NOAA has never logged an EF4 or EF5 crossing this county.
The dollar figure Renville 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
The storm that misses Renville County outright can still take its power out - outbreak-scale outages across Minnesota are common well beyond the tracked path. A battery-backup unit handles that without a generator's setup or fuel.
What this number is, and is not
One caveat before relying on Renville County's number: it is county-wide, and it covers about 983 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. Renville County has about 14,453 residents.