High Wind, Racine
- When
- March 20, 2:00 AM CST to 6:00 AM CST
- Where
- Racine forecast zone
- Property damage
- $1,000
- Coordinates
- 42.730, -87.812 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High Wind in Wisconsin, March 20, 1996
High winds (from the north/northeast, and possibly enhanced by less frictional drag over Lake Michigan) swept the Southeast part of Wisconsin and resulted in scattered areas of damage. In Kenosha county ($32000 in damage) the powerful winds peeled off a 40 ft.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 1
- Property damage
- $33,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 2
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.
High winds (from the north/northeast, and possibly enhanced by less frictional drag over Lake Michigan) swept the Southeast part of Wisconsin and resulted in scattered areas of damage. In Kenosha county ($32000 in damage) the powerful winds peeled off a 40 ft. by 75 ft. section of an apartment's wooden roof, and a 1200 sq. ft. roof section of a lawn and garden business, both in the city of Kenosha. Also in Kenosha county, the winds blew a pickup truck into a tree, injuring the driver; as well as blowing a street light into a passing car. In the southeast corner of Racine county the powerful winds damaged a business's ID sign ($1000). The winds were estimated to be in the 60 mph range. Wave heights along the nearshore area of Lake Michigan were up to 13 feet high.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
2 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
High Wind, Kenosha
- When
- March 20, 2:00 AM CST to 6:00 AM CST
- Where
- Kenosha forecast zone
- Injuries
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Property damage
- $32,000
- Coordinates
- 42.573, -87.840 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- High Wind
- Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- High Wind in Vermont, March 20, 1996
- Heavy Snow in Kentucky, March 20, 1996
- Heavy Snow in Georgia, March 20 to 21, 1996
- High Wind in New York, March 20, 1996
- Heavy Snow in North Carolina, March 20, 1996
- Winter Weather in West Virginia, March 20 to 23, 1996
- Cold in North Carolina, March 20 to 21, 1996
- Heavy Snow in North Carolina, March 20 to 21, 1996
- High Wind in Alaska, March 20 to 21, 1996
- High Wind in Indiana, March 20, 1996
- High Wind in Illinois, March 20, 1996
- High Wind in Michigan, March 20, 1996
More
Every storm in Wisconsin in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in Wisconsin, March 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: 5540619, 5540620.