Photo: Tony Webster from San Francisco, California · CC BY-SA 2.0FEMA expects less hazard damage per building in Duluth than in 73% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Duluth gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns, #75 of 274 in Minnesota. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (95%). Flood insurance has paid 58 claims here since 1978.
Graded on FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value (NRI v1.20, December 2025), weighted by where residents live; flood claims are shown, not graded. How hazard risk is graded
What stands out about Duluth’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Duluth faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
River and rain flooding
Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.
What’s behind Duluth’s grade
River and rain flooding is 95% of the building damage FEMA expects in Duluth, and Duluth’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 59% of U.S. census tracts.
B+ #75 of 274 in Minnesota; lower expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Duluth’s residents live in 37 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Minnesota town has lower expected damage than 57% of U.S. towns; within the state, Duluth has less expected damage per building than 73% of Minnesota towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $22.0M a year in losses across Duluth: $19.6M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Duluth flood? Sometimes: 58 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Duluth, from FEMA’s records: 1.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 69% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Duluth isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: St. Louis County.6 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Duluth
Disasters that paid out in Duluth itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Duluth), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Severe Storms and Flooding72 households applied for aid$191K aid approved$97K to the City of Duluth for repairs
- 2023Severe Storms and Flooding$189K to the City of Duluth for repairs
- 2018Severe Storms and Flooding$9.5M to the City of Duluth for repairs
- 2012Severe Storms and Flooding$8.9M to the City of Duluth for repairs29 flood claims paid that year
- 2001Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes$238K to the City of Duluth for repairs
- 1999Severe Storms, Winds, and Flooding$387K to the City of Duluth for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
St. Louis County has had 13 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Also 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in St. Louis County, 2025–2025.
Old photos of Duluth after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Duluth archive →Duluth and its neighbors
Duluth is 5th of the 10 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hermantown | A−less damage than 84% | river and rain flooding | 2 |
| Superior | A−less damage than 81% | river and rain flooding | 4 |
| Midway Township | A−less damage than 75% | river and rain flooding | 2 |
| Rice Lake | B+less damage than 74% | river and rain flooding | 2 |
| Duluth | B+less damage than 73% | river and rain flooding | 58 |
| Proctor | B+less damage than 73% | river and rain flooding | 2 |
| Canosia Township | B+less damage than 67% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Lakewood Township | Bless damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | 1 |
| Superior | Bless damage than 56% | river and rain flooding | 1 |
| Twin Lakes Township | B−more damage than 54% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Oliver | — | 462 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Get ready for what Duluth faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
Questions about natural hazards in Duluth
Is Duluth at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Duluth has lower expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk, #75 of 274 in Minnesota. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (95%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Duluth flood?
Flood insurance has paid 58 claims in Duluth since 1978, $827K in all, or 1.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 69% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 3 properties have flooded more than once.
Is Duluth in a flood zone?
Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In St. Louis County, 0.3% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.
How much is flood insurance in Duluth?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Duluth’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Duluth?
By FEMA money that reached Duluth, Severe Storms and Flooding (2018): $9.5M to the City of Duluth for repairs.
Is Duluth at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (95%), and Duluth’s rate for it is higher than 59% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Duluth.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Duluth’s residents lived in the 2020 census; 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. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.