Alert archive / Wisconsin / Tornado Warnings in 1986

Tornado Warning 7, NWS Milwaukee, WI

July 12, 1986Dodge County, Washington County, Wisconsin

NWS Milwaukee, WI issued this tornado warning at Jul 12, 1986, 3:32 PM CDT for Dodge County, Washington County, Wisconsin. It was in force for 58 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Jul 12, 1986, 3:32 PM CDT (20:32 UTC)
Expired
Jul 12, 1986, 4:30 PM CDT
In force
58 min
Issued by
NWS Milwaukee, WI
Area
Whole counties

Counties Dodge County, WI, Washington County, WI

The radar

The WSR-88D network and its archive begin in 1991, so there is no radar volume for this alert.

The nearest sounding before it

Green Bay/Straub, WI (KGRB), launched 12:00Z, 8.5 hours before the alert went out and 124 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Green Bay/Straub, WI at 12:00Z on 1986-07-12Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Green Bay/Straub, WI at 12:00Z on 1986-07-12The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 6 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
660 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
27 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
6 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
32 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
TTAA00 KMKE 122032
TORMKE
WIC027-131-122130-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED/EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED 
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE WI
332 PM CDT SAT JUL 12 1986

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING 
EFFECTIVE UNTIL 430 PM CDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES OF

SOUTHEAST WISCONSIN...DODGE AND WASHINGTON

AT 328 PM CDT...DODGE COUNTY SHERIFF REPORTED A TORNADO TOUCHDOWN
AT HIGHWAY P AND SOUTH COUNTY LINE ROAD..NORTHEAST OF ASHIPUNN.

IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES YOU...TAKE COVER IMMEDIATELY.
A BASEMENT..INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR IS THE
SAFEST PLACE IN MOST BUILDINGS. GET UNDER SOMETHING STURDY.

GARCIA

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this tornado warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jul 12, 11:09 AM CDT, 4 hours 23 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MADISON WI
1107 AM CDT SAT JUL 12 1986

AT 1102 AM CDT SHOWERS AND SOME THUNDERSTORMS WERE NOTED OVER EXTREME
SOUTHEAST WISCONSIN AND MAINLY OUT OVER SOUTHERN LAKE MICHIGAN.  SOME
NEW SHOWERS WERE NOTED DEVELOPING ALONG A LINE FROM MILWAUKEE TO MADISON
TO LONEROCK AND WESTWARD.  ALL OF THESE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE
MOVING TO THE EAST AT ABOUT 30 MPH.

ADDISON
Special weather statement, Jul 12, 12:55 PM CDT, 2 hours 37 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MADISON WI
1252PM CDT SAT JUL 12 1986

....VERY HEAVY THUNDERSTORM IN NORTHWESTERN DANE COUNTY....

AT 1247PM CDT RADAR LOCATED A VERY HEAVY THUNDERSTORM 10 MILES NORTHWEST
OF MADISON MOVING TOWARDS THE EAST..NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH.  THIS STORM
COULD PRODUCE BREIF HEAVY RAIN...HAIL...AND GUSTY WINDS.

IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHS...SEEK SHELTER IMMEADATELY AND HAVE
YOUR REPORT RELAYED  TO THE SHERIFFS OFFICE TO BE FORWARDED TO THE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE.

THIS STORM IS HEADED TOWARDS THE CITY OF COLUMBUS IN CLUMBIA COUNTY
...ABOUT 20 MILES NORTHEAST OF MADISON.
STIMACH
Special weather statement, Jul 12, 1:14 PM CDT, 2 hours 18 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MADISON WI
1252PM CDT SAT JUL 12 1986

AT 1 PM CDT A 40 MILE WIDE AREA OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS LOCATED
FROM LAKE GENEVA OR 40 MILES SOUTHWEST OF MI
Special weather statement, Jul 12, 1:30 PM CDT, 2 hours 2 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE WI
125 PM CDT SAT JUL 12 1986

AT 115 PM CDT...WEATHER RADAR INDICATED A DEVELOPING AREA OF
THUNDERSTORMS OVER MUCH OF SOUTH CENTRAL WISCONSIN. THIS AREA
EXTENDED FROM JUST SOUTH OF EAU CLAIRE SOUTHEASTWARD TO JUST
WEST OF MILWAUKEE. THE STRONGEST STORMS WERE NORTH OF MADISON
IN DANE COUNTY AND IN NORTHEAST JEFFERSON COUNTY. MOVEMENT WAS
TO THE EAST NORTHEAST AT ABOUT 25 MILES AN HOUR.

SO FAR...ONLY HEAVY RAIN HAS BEEN REPORTED WITH THESE STORMS.
THE SHERIFFS OFFICE IN JEFFERSON COUNTY REPORTED MODERATE TO
HEAVY RAIN BUT THERE WERE NO STRONG GUSTY WINDS.

PERSONS IN THE PATH OF THESE STORMS CAN EXPECT A PERIOD OF HEAVY
RAIN. THEY SHOULD ALSO KEEP AN EYE TO THE SKY FOR THREATENING
WEATHER AND THEN GO TO SAFE SHELTER SHOULD THE THREATENING WEATHER
APPROACH.
MORRIS
Special weather statement, Jul 12, 1:48 PM CDT, 1 hour 44 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MADISON WI
145 PM CDT SAT JUL 12 1986

AT 130 PM CDT A 50 MILE WIDE AREA OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS LOCATED
FROM 35 MILES SOUTHWEST OF MILWAUKEE TO ABOUT 25 MILES NORTH NORTHWEST
OF LACROSSE WAS MOVING TO THE EAST AT ABOUT 30 MPH.  THE AREA CONTAINED
A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS JUST ABOUT THE ENTIRE LENGTH OF THE RAIN
PATERN.  MODERATE TO HEAVY RAIN, STRONG GUSTY WINDS AND POSSIBLE HAIL
MAY OCCUR ALONG THIS LINE.

ADDISON
Special weather statement, Jul 12, 2:20 PM CDT, 1 hour 12 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE WI
220 PM CDT SAT JUL 12 1986

...TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN WISCONSIN UNTIL
800 PM CDT...

AT 210 PM CDT..SHOWERS AND A FEW STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WERE OVER CENTRAL
AND SOUTHEAST WISCONSIN.  THE STRONGEST STORM WAS IN SOUTHWEST DODGE
COUNTY..ABOUT 20 MILES NORTHEAST OF MADISON.  THIS STORM WAS PRODUCING
EXTREMELY HEAVY RAIN AND WILL MOVE ACROSS DODGE COUNTY THROUGH 315 PM.

NO SEVERE WEATHER HAS BEEN REPORTED AS OF 210 PM.

CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS AND
POSSIBLE TORNADOES IN CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN WISCONSIN THROUGH 800 PM.

YOU ARE ADVISED TO KEEP ALERT TO RAPIDLY CHANGING WEATHER CONDITIONS.
SEEK SHELTER IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES.  REPORT ANY SEVERE
WEATHER TO YOUR NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY WHO WILL THEN RELAY TO
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR COMMERCI=AL RADIO OR TV FOR FURTHER
STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS.

HAASE

The office that day

Everything else NWS Milwaukee, WI issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 12, 2:40 PM CDTTornado WarningMKXJefferson35 min
Jul 12, 4:05 PM CDTTornado WarningMKXWaukesha25 min
Jul 12, 6:01 PM CDTTornado WarningMKXDodge59 min
Jul 12, 6:53 PM CDTTornado WarningMKXWashington52 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Wisconsin, 1986Every tornado warning in 1986Tornadoes in 1986

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.