Water Service Outages in Minnesota by City
81% of Minnesota's 968 community water systems serve 3,300 people or fewer, so many outages and boil water notices affect a single small town or subdivision.
Minnesota drinking water record
Busiest year: 2025 (74 violations). Counted by the year the violation period began. Source: EPA SDWIS.
- Community water systems: 968 active systems serve about 4,681,564 people. 783 of them (81%) serve 3,300 people or fewer; 920 draw mainly on groundwater and 47 on surface water.
- Health-based violations since 2015: 468, at 108 systems (11% of all systems). That share is 6th of 50 states (1 = lowest).
- Most common problems: contaminant averages over the limit (411); monthly turbidity (17); uncertified operators (13). Source: EPA SDWIS
- Largest system: Minneapolis, about 425,300 people, with 0 health-based violations since 2015. Source: EPA SDWIS
- Housing age: the median Minnesota home was built in 1979 (US 1980). Source: US Census Bureau, ACS 2020–2024 (table B25035)
- Storm damage to water service: NOAA storm narratives mention water mains, boil water notices or lost water service in 4 episodes in Minnesota since 2015. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database
- April 16, 2023, Traverse (flood): “This high water mainly impacted agricultural lands.” Source: NOAA Storm Events Database
- August 28, 2021, St. Louis (lightning): “In addition to the steeple damage, the lighting strike also led to a water main break at the intersection in front of the church.” Source: NOAA Storm Events Database
| System | People served | Main source | Health violations since 2015 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minneapolis | 425,300 | Surface water | 0 |
| Saint Paul Regional Water Services | 392,529 | Surface water | 1 |
| Rochester | 123,624 | Groundwater | 0 |
| Bloomington | 91,300 | Bought surface water | 0 |
| Brooklyn Park | 89,995 | Groundwater | 0 |
| Duluth | 86,859 | Surface water | 1 |
Source: EPA SDWIS.
Minnesota is 3rd of 5 (1 = lowest share). Source: EPA SDWIS.
Checked September 2026.
Who to call in Minnesota, city by city
5 Minnesota cities on this site and the water utility for each. What to do while you wait is in our water service outage guide.
- Minneapolis Minneapolis Water Treatment & Distribution Services
- St. Paul Saint Paul Regional Water Services
- Rochester Rochester Public Utilities
- Bloomington City of Bloomington Utilities
- Duluth City of Duluth Public Works & Utilities
Frequently asked questions
Is there a water service outage in Minnesota right now?
Not on this site: no reports from Minnesota in the last 24 hours.
How many public water systems are in Minnesota?
EPA records list 968 active community water systems in Minnesota, serving about 4,681,564 people. 81% serve 3,300 people or fewer.
How common are drinking water violations in Minnesota?
Since 2015, 108 of 968 community water systems in Minnesota (11%) have had at least one health-based violation, 468 in total.
What is the largest water system in Minnesota?
Minneapolis, which EPA records list as serving about 425,300 people.
Report counts are user-submitted; other figures name their official source. How our data works
Cities in Minnesota with Water Service Outages Information
Bloomington
no reports in the last 24 hours · pop. 89,987
City of Bloomington Utilities
Duluth
no reports in the last 24 hours · pop. 86,118
City of Duluth Public Works & Utilities
Minneapolis
no reports in the last 24 hours · pop. 429,606
Minneapolis Water Treatment & Distribution Services
Rochester
no reports in the last 24 hours · pop. 121,395
Rochester Public Utilities
St. Paul
no reports in the last 24 hours · pop. 311,527
Saint Paul Regional Water Services