Alert archive / Wisconsin / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1987

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 4, NWS Milwaukee, WI

May 21, 1987Dodge County, Jefferson County, Wisconsin

NWS Milwaukee, WI issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 21, 1987, 6:06 PM CDT for Dodge County, Jefferson County, Wisconsin. It was in force for 54 min. 2 reports came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
May 21, 1987, 6:06 PM CDT (23:06 UTC)
Expired
May 21, 1987, 7:00 PM CDT
In force
54 min
Issued by
NWS Milwaukee, WI
Area
Whole counties

Counties Dodge County, WI, Jefferson County, WI

The radar

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

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
May 21, 6:20 PM CDTHail 2Jefferson, WI
May 21, 7:10 PM CDTHail 2Dodge, WI

NCEI Storm Data entries that began inside the alert's area while it was in force. Before 2003 the local storm report archive is thin, so this is the record of what happened rather than what was phoned in. Storm Data before 1996 records only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail.

The nearest sounding before it

Green Bay/Straub, WI (KGRB), launched 12:00Z, 11.1 hours before the alert went out and 149 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 1987-05-21Temperature 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°0°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 1987-05-21The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 58 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
949 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
33 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
58 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
105 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 212308
SVRMKE
WIC027-055-220000-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE WI
608 PM CDT THU MAY 21 1987

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 
WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 700 PM CDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING 
COUNTIES OF

SOUTHEAST WISCONSIN...DODGE AND JEFFERSON

AT 605 PM CDT WEATHER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM
SOUTHEAST OF MADISON MOVING INTO NORTHWEST JEFFERSON COUNTY.

THIS STORM IS THEN EXPECTED TO MOVE INTO DODGE COUNTY.
GOLF BALL SIZED HAIL HAS BEEN REPORTED WITH THIS STORM.

REMEMBER..SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY DO PRODUCE
A TORNADO WITH LITTLE OR NO ADVANCE WARNING..SO BE 8ON THE LOOKOUT.

HENTZ

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm 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, May 21, 4:56 PM CDT, 1 hour 10 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE WI
455 PM CDT WED MAY 20 1987

....TORNADO WATCH FOR MUCH OF WISCONSIN UNTIL 9 PM CDT...

AT 454 PM CDT...WEATHER RADAR INDICATED STRONG THUNDERSTORMS
IN NORTHWEST WOOD COUNTY...ABOUT 5 MILES SOUTH OF MARSHFIELD.

THE STORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS ARE CAPABLE OF RAPID INTENSIFICATION AND
COULD PRODUCE LARGE HAIL...BRIEF HEAVY DOWNPOURS AND STRONG WINDS.
"
PERSONS IN THESES AREAS SHOULD BE PREPARED TO TAKE COVER IF
THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES.

GARCIA
Special weather statement, May 21, 5:00 PM CDT, 1 hour 6 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE WI
458 PM CDT WED MAY 20 1987

....TORNADO WATCH FOR MUCH OF WISCONSIN UNTIL 9 PM CDT...

AT 458 PM CDT...WEATHER RADAR INDICATED STRONG THUNDERSTORMS
IN NORTHWEST WOOD COUNTY...IN MARSHFIELD AND SOUTH TO PITTSVILLE.

WOOD COUNTY POLICE REPORTED PEA SIZE HAIL AND HEAVY RAIN.

THE STORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS ARE CAPABLE OF RAPID INTENSIFICATION AND
COU)LD PRODUCE LARGE HAIL...BRIEF HEAVY DOWNPOURS AND STRONG WINDS.

PERSONS IN THESES AREAS SHOULD BE PREPARED TO TAKE COVER IF
THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES.

GARCIA
Special weather statement, May 21, 5:28 PM CDT, 38 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE WI
525 PM CDT WED MAY 20 1987

....TORNADO WATCH FOR MUCH OF WISCONSIN UNTIL 9 PM CDT...

AT 525 PM CDT...WEATHER RADAR INDICATED STRONG THUNDERSTORMS
JUST NORTHWEST OF WAUSAU AND ANOTHER STORM NORTHWEST OF MOSINEE
IN MARATHON COUNTY.

EARLIER...WOOD COUNTY POLICE REPORTED PEA SIZE HAIL AND HEAVY RAIN
IN MARSHFIELD AND AUBURNDALE WITH THESE STORMS.

THE STORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST ATE 40 MPH.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS ARE CAPABLE OF RAPID INTENSIFICATION AND
COULD PRODUCE LARGE HAIL...BRIEF HEAVY DOWNPOURS AND STRONG WINDS.

PERSONS IN THESES AREAS SHOULD BE PREPARED TO TAKE COVER IF
THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES.
GARCIA
Special weather statement, May 21, 5:45 PM CDT, 21 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE WI
540 PM CDT WED MAY 20 1987

....TORNADO WATCH FOR MUCH OF WISCONSIN UNTIL 9 PM CDT...

AT 540 PM CDT...WEATHER RADAR INDICATED A RAPIDLY DEVELOPING
THUNDERSTORM ABOUT 25 MILES WEST OF JANESVILLE IN ROCK COUNTY.

ROCK COUNTY REPORTED HEAVY RAINS AND MARBLE SIZE HAIL WITH THIS
STORM.  OTHER THUNDERSTORMS WERE DEVELOPING 20 MILES SOUTHEAST OF
MADISON.  THIS STORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AND COULD EFFECT SOUTH
WEST DODGE AND JEFFERSON COUNTY BY 6 PM.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS ARE CAPABLE OF RAPID INTENSIFICATION AND
COULD PRODUCE HAIL...BRIEF HEAVY DOWNPOURS AND STRONG WINDS.

PERSONS IN THESES AREAS SHOULD BE PREPARED TO TAKE COVER IF
THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES.
KLD
Special weather statement, May 21, 6:01 PM CDT, 5 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE WI
600 PM CDT THU MAY 21 1987

...RAPIDLY DEVELOPING THUNDERSTORMS IN SOUTHEAST WISCONSIN...

AT 600 PM CDT...WEATHER RADAR INDICATED A RAPIDLY DEVELOPING
THUNDERSTORM 40 MILES NORTHEAST OF MADISON IN DODGE COUNTY.
THE STORM IS NEAR HORICON JUST WEST OF MAYVILLE.

THIS STORM WAS MOVING NORTHEAST AND IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING HAIL
STRONG GUSTY WINDS AND VERY HEAVY RAIN.

A TORNADO W2ATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR MUCH OF WISCONSIN UNTIL 9PM.

PERSONS IN THESES AREAS SHOULD BE PREPARED TO TAKE COVER IF
THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES.

HENTZ
Special weather statement, May 21, 6:06 PM CDT, 0 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE WI
605 PM CDT THU MAY 21 1987

....TORNADO WATCH FOR MUCH OF WISCONSIN UNTIL 9 PM CDT...

...VERY STRONG THUNDERSTORMS IN NORTH CENTRAL WISCONSIN...

AT 559 PM CDT WEATHER RADAR DETECTED A CLUSTER OF VERY STRONG
THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE NORTH CENTRAL COUNTIES OF EASTERN MARATHON
AND WESTERN LANGLADE.

THE MOST INTENSE STORMS IN LANGLADE COUNTY WERE NORTH OF KEMPSTER..
OR 31 MILES NORTHEAST OF WAUSAU...AND JUST WEST OF ANTIGO..26 MILES
NORTHEAST OF WAUSAU.

IN MARATHON COUNTY THE STRONGEST STORM WAS ABOUT 10 MILES NORTHEAST
OF WAUSAU.

THESE STORMS ARE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH AND WILL BE AFFECTING
NORTHEAST MARATHON..WE5STERN LANGLADE..AND SOUTHERN FOREST COUNTIES
THROUGH 630 PM CDT.

PERSONS SHOULD BE ALERT TO THESE APPROACHING STORMS AND BE PREPARED
TO TAKE ACTION IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES.
ZAJDEL

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Wisconsin, 1987Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1987

Sources

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