Can you believe that it has been a decade since Minot experienced its biggest flood in recorded history? It was a devastating time for thousands of residents as homes, businesses, parks, schools, and more were destroyed by the rare (for the area) phenomenon. Anyone who was impacted will most likely not forget the scary time.

Instead of going home to Lansford in the summer of 2011, I spent the season nannying in Dickinson for a family friend. We had been following the news about the potential flood that could devastate Minot, but we did not really think anything too horrible would actually happen. I mean, weeks earlier, people were forced to evacuate but they were able to go back home almost immediately. And the North Dakota State Fair was still scheduled to go on, come hell or high water. But things did get bad in a hurry.

While I was working in Dickinson, a childhood friend lived in New England and we would meet up from time to time. One evening, we had plans to grocery shop together and talk about her upcoming wedding in Minot. Just before we were supposed to meet up, I got an alarming call that she and her fiance were rushing to Minot to clean out her childhood home because of an order to evacuate - she was pretty shaken up about it. That was when it seemed real to me.

In the end, her house was lost and her family spent some time in FEMA trailers. I am sure she and her family went through a lot that only people who lost their homes could ever understand. And I am sure there are still tough memories when she and her family think back on that time.

My family has had a home in the area for almost my entire life. Luckily, my parents live far enough out of town that their home was not affected - only my dad's job in Minot was affected because his company was in the flood area. I do remember an evening trip home (after the flood happened) where I had to bypass Minot in order to get to Lansford. It was dark outside, I could see streetlights reflecting the in the water that had nearly reached the rooftops of houses. It was so still and so creepy.

LOOK: The most expensive weather and climate disasters in recent decades

Stacker ranked the most expensive climate disasters by the billions since 1980 by the total cost of all damages, adjusted for inflation, based on 2021 data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The list starts with Hurricane Sally, which caused $7.3 billion in damages in 2020, and ends with a devastating 2005 hurricane that caused $170 billion in damage and killed at least 1,833 people. Keep reading to discover the 50 of the most expensive climate disasters in recent decades in the U.S.

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