Flooding and Damaging Winds in Wisconsin, August 22, 2001

Name: Flooding and Damaging Winds in Wisconsin, August 22, 2001
Start: 2001-08-22T02:55
End: 2001-08-22T06:00
Location: Wisconsin

August 22, 2001 · NWS MKX · 9 events in 4 counties and zones

Scattered, early morning severe thunderstorms, packing damaging downburst winds, and many lightning strikes, moved through southeast Wisconsin. ).

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 6 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: $127,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 9

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.

Scattered, early morning severe thunderstorms, packing damaging downburst winds, and many lightning strikes, moved through southeast Wisconsin. Estimated winds gusts around 52 knots (60 mph) toppled large trees or broke off many large tree limbs in the Waupun area (Fond du Lac), the central part of Dodge County from Juneau to Mayville, and in the West Bend area (Washington Co.). Lightning strikes damaged 5 power stations in the Waupun area, and started a fire that completely burned a barn near Farmersville (Dodge Co.). Brief, heavy rains accompanied the storms, resulting in urban/small stream flooding in and around Juneau (Dodge Co.). The Emergency Management of Dodge County reported 2.50 inches of rain at Juneau with many area roads under 1/2 to 1 foot of water. Visibility during the heavy rains was as low as 50 yards. In addition, small hail (1/4 inch in diameter) was reported around Juneau, as well as in Milwaukee County. Several lightning strikes around West Bend (Washington Co.) and Port Washington (Ozaukee Co.), knocked out power lines and/or transformers, resulting in 2000 customers in those cities losing electrical power. One lightning bolt struck a West Bend home, starting a self-extinguishing fire that left about $1200 in damage. In addition, 2.5 to 3.0 inches of rain fell in the West Bend area during the pre-dawn hours, leading to urban flooding in that city. West Bend residents said the streets looked like "waterfalls."

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Milwaukee, WI wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 22, 2:43 AM CST, 12 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 22, 2:43 AM CST, 12 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI
343 AM CDT WED AUG 22 2001

FORECAST FOCUS ON CURRENT PRECIP.

SFC ANALYSIS SHOWS LOW PRESSURE OVER WRN IA WITH WARM FRONT
EXTENDING INTO ERN IA SEWD INTO WRN IL. A COLD FRONT IS LOCATED
ALONG THE MN/CANADIAN BORDER WHICH IS ASSOCIATED WITH STRONG
SHORTWAVE PROGRESSING EWD ACROSS HUDSON BAY.

35 KT LLJ AND SHORTWAVE TROUGH SUPPORTING CONVECTION OVER CNTRL AND
SRN WI. MODELS AGREE ON AXIS OF LLJ BECOMING ESTABLISHED OVER
ILLINOIS AND INDIANA LATER THIS MORNING...THEREBY ENDING CURRENT
CONVECTION. WARM FRONT TO STALL OVER FAR SRN WI AS CANADIAN COLD
FRONT APPROACHES FROM THE NORTH. ONLY WEAK SFC CONVERGENCE WILL
RESULT BUT WITH SOME SUNSHINE EXPECTED ACROSS SOUTH CENTRAL WI IN
WAKE OF CURRENT CONVECTION...THERE MAY BE A CHANCE FOR MORE
THUNDERSTORMS. WILL MENTION 30 POPS IN THE AFTERNOON...AND CARRY
INTO THE EVENING FOR SRN CWA.

UPPER RIDGE TO BUILD ACROSS THE MIDDLE USA AND CANADA THROUGH
THURSDAY AND FRIDAY WITH STRONG SFC HIGH NEAR HUDSON BAY. NORTHEAST
WINDS AND CLEAR SKIES EXPECTED. GUIDANCE TEMPS MAY BE A LITTLE TO
COOL FOR THURSDAY...BUT TEMPS WILL BE DETERMINED ON STRENGTH OF NE
WINDS. HAVE COMPROMISED WITH ETA 2M HIGH TEMPS AND GUIDANCE TEMPS
FOR THU. OTHERWISE GUIDANCE TEMPS LOOK GOOD.

.MKX...NONE

MG

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 lightning, 3 thunderstorm wind, 2 flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Fond du Lac

When: August 22, 2:55 AM CST
Where: Fond du Lac County, Waupun
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 43.633, -88.733

Lightning, Fond du Lac

When: August 22, 2:55 AM CST
Where: Fond du Lac County, Waupun
Property damage: $20,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 43.754, -88.488 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Thunderstorm Wind, Washington

When: August 22, 3:28 AM CST
Where: Washington County, West Bend
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 43.417, -88.183

Lightning, Washington

When: August 22, 3:35 AM CST
Where: Washington County, West Bend
Property damage: $17,000
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 43.369, -88.231 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Thunderstorm Wind, Dodge

When: August 22, 3:45 AM CST to 4:00 AM CST
Where: Dodge County, Juneau
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 43.400, -88.700

Flood, Dodge

When: August 22, 3:45 AM CST to 6:00 AM CST
Where: Dodge County, Juneau
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 43.416, -88.707 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lightning, Dodge

When: August 22, 3:45 AM CST
Where: Dodge County, Farmersville
Property damage: $75,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 43.416, -88.707 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lightning, Ozaukee

When: August 22, 3:50 AM CST
Where: Ozaukee County, Port Washington
Property damage: $15,000
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 43.403, -87.891 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Washington

When: August 22, 4:00 AM CST to 6:00 AM CST
Where: Washington County, West Bend
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 43.369, -88.231 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

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.
Lightning: A lightning strike that killed, injured or caused damage.
Flood: Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Wisconsin in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Wisconsin, August 2001

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: 5266838, 5266839, 5266843, 5266845, 5266840, 5266841, 5266842, 5266846, 5266844.