Flood, Lac Qui Parle
- When
- March 15, 6:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Lac Qui Parle forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.996, -96.173 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flooding in Minnesota, March 15 to 31, 1997
The Minnesota River reached flood stage at Henderson on 3/15/97 and continued to slowly flood through the last half of March and continued through April into the first half of May. The combination of above normal temperatures during the last two weeks of March along with a deep snowcover and additional rainfall resulted in near record or record crests at many locations along the Minnesota River…
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 15 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 15
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS MPX wrote it up.
The Minnesota River reached flood stage at Henderson on 3/15/97 and continued to slowly flood through the last half of March and continued through April into the first half of May. The combination of above normal temperatures during the last two weeks of March along with a deep snowcover and additional rainfall resulted in near record or record crests at many locations along the Minnesota River in April.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
15 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Flood, Blue Earth
- When
- March 15, 6:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Blue Earth forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.035, -94.067 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood, Brown
- When
- March 15, 6:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Brown forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.242, -94.727 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood, Carver
- When
- March 15, 6:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Carver forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.821, -93.803 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood, Chippewa
- When
- March 15, 6:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Chippewa forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 45.022, -95.567 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood, Dakota
- When
- March 15, 6:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Dakota forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.672, -93.065 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood, Hennepin
- When
- March 15, 6:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Hennepin forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 45.005, -93.477 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood, Le Sueur
- When
- March 15, 6:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Le Sueur forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.371, -93.730 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood, Nicollet
- When
- March 15, 6:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Nicollet forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.350, -94.247 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood, Redwood
- When
- March 15, 6:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Redwood forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.404, -95.254 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood, Renville
- When
- March 15, 6:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Renville forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.727, -94.947 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood, Scott
- When
- March 15, 6:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Scott forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.649, -93.536 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood, Sibley
- When
- March 15, 6:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Sibley forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.580, -94.232 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood, Swift
- When
- March 15, 6:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Swift forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 45.283, -95.681 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood, Yellow Medicine
- When
- March 15, 6:00 AM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Yellow Medicine forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.716, -95.868 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Flood
- Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Cold in North Carolina, March 15, 1997
- Heavy Rain in Washington, March 15 to 19, 1997
- Heavy Rain in Washington, March 15 to 19, 1997
- Heavy Snow in New York, March 15 to 16, 1997
- High Wind in Alaska, March 15 to 18, 1997
- Flooding in Louisiana, March 15 to 24, 1997
- Heavy Snow in Montana, March 15, 1997
- Heavy Snow in Idaho, March 15, 1997
- Heavy Snow in Washington, March 15, 1997
- Flood in Ohio, March 15, 1997
- Heavy Snow in New York, March 15 to 17, 1997
- High Wind in Oregon, March 15, 1997
More
Every storm in Minnesota in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, March 1997
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5602409, 5602410, 5602411, 5602412, 5602518, 5602519, 5602520, 5602521, 5602522, 5602523, 5602524, 5602525, 5602526, 5602527, 5602528.