Flooding and Hail in Wisconsin, May 28, 1998

Name: Flooding and Hail in Wisconsin, May 28, 1998
Start: 1998-05-28T06:30
End: 1998-05-28T22:30
Location: Wisconsin

May 28, 1998 · NWS MKX · 33 events in 16 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $327,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 33

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.

Powerful thunderstorms packing damaging winds and heavy downpours resulted in numerous trees and power lines down across southcentral and southeast Wisconsin. The felled trees and power lines in Columbia county resulted in 1300 customers losing electrical power in that county. Some significant damage included roofs on two homes in Jefferson (Jefferson Co.) and damage to farm buildings near Hebron (Jefferson Co.). In one of these farm buildings, a stereo was "sucked" out and thrown 300 feet down the road. Lightning took a toll in Delafield to Pewaukee (Waukesha Co.) area where 4 homes were hit and 3000 electric customers were out of power. Near Dousman (Waukesha Co.), a toppled tree fell on and damaged a car. A gust of 70 mph was noted at the City of Waukesha Airport. In the city of Waukesha, a downed tree totaled a parked car. A tree fell on a home in rural Benton and in South Wayne, both in Lafayette county. Lightning struck a barn near Orfordville (Rock Co.) and the resultant fire damaged machinery and some hay. A boat on Lake Geneva (Big Foot Beach, Walworth Co.) was damaged when the winds lifted it out of its cradle. In Racine county a pole barn and 2 boats were damaged near Caledonia. Also in Racine county, 2 1/2 feet of standing water was reported on Highway 20.

The radar

The Milwaukee radar (KMKX), 19 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:56 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

26 thunderstorm wind, 2 flood, 2 hail, 2 lightning, 1 funnel cloud. Local standard time, as filed.

Flood, Jefferson

When: May 28, 6:30 AM CST to 7:30 AM CST
Where: Jefferson County, Watertown Arpt
Coordinates: 43.021, -88.776 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Hail, Lafayette

When: May 28, 5:54 PM CST to 6:00 PM CST
Where: Lafayette County, Benton to Leadmine
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Property damage: $12,000
Coordinates: 42.570, -90.380

Thunderstorm Wind, Sauk

When: May 28, 6:55 PM CST
Where: Sauk County, 3 mi S of Reedsburg
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Coordinates: 43.480, -90.000

Thunderstorm Wind, Sauk

When: May 28, 6:59 PM CST
Where: Sauk County, La Valle
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph)
Coordinates: 43.580, -90.130

Thunderstorm Wind, Lafayette

When: May 28, 7:00 PM CST to 7:15 PM CST
Where: Lafayette County, Seymour Corners to 2 mi N of Darlington
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 42.630, -90.250

Funnel Cloud, Lafayette

When: May 28, 7:01 PM CST
Where: Lafayette County, 4 mi SW of Benton
Coordinates: 42.661, -90.132 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Thunderstorm Wind, Marquette

When: May 28, 7:30 PM CST
Where: Marquette County, Briggsville
Property damage: $1,000
Coordinates: 43.650, -89.580

Thunderstorm Wind, Columbia

When: May 28, 7:40 PM CST
Where: Columbia County, Portage
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 43.550, -89.450

Thunderstorm Wind, Lafayette

When: May 28, 7:42 PM CST
Where: Lafayette County, South Wayne
Property damage: $8,000
Coordinates: 42.570, -89.880

Thunderstorm Wind, Dane

When: May 28, 8:00 PM CST
Where: Dane County, Madison
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 43.070, -89.420

Thunderstorm Wind, Green

When: May 28, 8:00 PM CST
Where: Green County, 2 mi NW of New Glarus
Property damage: $1,000
Coordinates: 42.830, -89.670

Thunderstorm Wind, Green

When: May 28, 8:00 PM CST
Where: Green County, 2 mi S of Monroe
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.570, -89.630

Thunderstorm Wind, Marquette

When: May 28, 8:05 PM CST
Where: Marquette County, Westfield
Property damage: $1,000
Coordinates: 43.880, -89.480

Hail, Columbia

When: May 28, 8:05 PM CST
Where: Columbia County, Cambria
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 43.550, -89.100

Thunderstorm Wind, Dodge

When: May 28, 8:12 PM CST
Where: Dodge County, Randolph
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 43.530, -89.000

Lightning, Rock

When: May 28, 8:30 PM CST
Where: Rock County, 3 mi SW of Orfordville
Property damage: $40,000
Coordinates: 42.671, -89.072 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Thunderstorm Wind, Rock

When: May 28, 8:30 PM CST
Where: Rock County, Janesville
Property damage: $7,000
Coordinates: 42.680, -89.020

Thunderstorm Wind, Dodge

When: May 28, 8:32 PM CST
Where: Dodge County, Waupun
Measured: 56 kt (64 mph)
Coordinates: 43.630, -88.730

Thunderstorm Wind, Jefferson

When: May 28, 8:35 PM CST
Where: Jefferson County, Jefferson to Hebron
Property damage: $70,000
Coordinates: 43.000, -88.800

Thunderstorm Wind, Fond du Lac

When: May 28, 8:44 PM CST
Where: Fond du Lac County, Fond du Lac
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 43.780, -88.450

Thunderstorm Wind, Jefferson

When: May 28, 8:45 PM CST
Where: Jefferson County, 4 mi SE of Sullivan
Measured: 55 kt (63 mph)
Coordinates: 42.980, -88.530

Thunderstorm Wind, Waukesha

When: May 28, 8:52 PM CST
Where: Waukesha County, 3 mi SW of Dousman
Property damage: $8,000
Coordinates: 42.980, -88.520

Thunderstorm Wind, Walworth

When: May 28, 9:00 PM CST
Where: Walworth County, Elkhorn
Measured: 68 kt (78 mph)
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.670, -88.550

Thunderstorm Wind, Walworth

When: May 28, 9:00 PM CST to 9:15 PM CST
Where: Walworth County, Lake Geneva to Genoa City
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 42.600, -88.430

Thunderstorm Wind, Waukesha

When: May 28, 9:04 PM CST
Where: Waukesha County, Waukesha
Measured: 61 kt (70 mph)
Property damage: $15,000
Coordinates: 43.020, -88.220

Lightning, Waukesha

When: May 28, 9:15 PM CST to 10:00 PM CST
Where: Waukesha County, 3 mi NE of Delafield
Property damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 43.018, -88.304 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Thunderstorm Wind, Milwaukee

When: May 28, 9:24 PM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Milwaukee County, West Allis to Hales Corners
Measured: 61 kt (70 mph)
Property damage: $4,000
Coordinates: 43.000, -87.970

Thunderstorm Wind, Kenosha

When: May 28, 9:25 PM CST to 9:35 PM CST
Where: Kenosha County, Twin Lakes to Silver Lake
Property damage: $10,000
Coordinates: 42.530, -88.250

Thunderstorm Wind, Sheboygan

When: May 28, 9:25 PM CST
Where: Sheboygan County, Elkhart Lake
Property damage: $7,000
Coordinates: 43.830, -88.020

Thunderstorm Wind, Racine

When: May 28, 9:30 PM CST to 9:40 PM CST
Where: Racine County, Caledonia to Racine
Property damage: $100,000
Coordinates: 42.800, -87.930

Flood, Racine

When: May 28, 9:30 PM CST to 10:30 PM CST
Where: Racine County, Waterford
Coordinates: 42.730, -87.812 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Thunderstorm Wind, Milwaukee

When: May 28, 9:45 PM CST
Where: Milwaukee County, Brown Deer
Property damage: $800
Coordinates: 43.170, -87.970

Thunderstorm Wind, Walworth

When: May 28, 9:55 PM CST
Where: Walworth County, 2 mi SW of Whitewater
Property damage: $4,000
Coordinates: 42.820, -88.770

What these are

Flood: Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.
Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
Funnel Cloud: A rotating column of cloud extending from a thunderstorm that did not reach the ground.
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 1998 Every state in 1998 This day in weather history Warnings in Wisconsin, May 1998

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: 5641721, 5641706, 5640096, 5641709, 5641707, 5640095, 5641710, 5640097, 5641708, 5641713, 5641714, 5641715, 5641711, 5641712, 5640099, 5640098, 5641718, 5641719, 5641716, 5641720, 5641717, 5640085, 5640087, 5640088, 5641722, 5640084, 5640089, 5640092, 5640094, 5640091, 5640093, 5640090, 5640086.