Lightning Strike in Wisconsin, August 5, 1996

Name: Lightning Strike in Wisconsin, August 5, 1996
Start: 1996-08-05T22:14
End: 1996-08-05T22:14
Location: Wisconsin

August 5, 1996 · NWS MKX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Lightning struck a tree, and the electricity then traveled underground to fracture a natural gas main.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

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The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $5,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

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 MKX wrote it up.

Lightning struck a tree, and the electricity then traveled underground to fracture a natural gas main.

The radar

The Milwaukee radar (KMKX), 52 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 04:12 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.

Lightning, Washington

When: August 5, 10:14 PM CST
Where: Washington County, 2 mi NW of West Bend
Property damage: $5,000
Coordinates: 43.369, -88.231 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Lightning: A lightning strike that killed, injured or caused damage.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Wisconsin in 1996 Every state in 1996 This day in weather history Warnings in Wisconsin, August 1996

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: 5567020.