Wisconsin, 2001

Ice Storm in Wisconsin, January 29 to 30, 2001

January 29 to 30, 2001 · NWS GRB · 11 events in 11 counties and zones

Strong southerly flow ahead of a surface low pressure system pulled warm and moist air northward from the Gulf of Mexico. A significant band of precipitation moved through Wisconsin from south to north.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 11 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
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
11

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 GRB wrote it up.

Strong southerly flow ahead of a surface low pressure system pulled warm and moist air northward from the Gulf of Mexico. A significant band of precipitation moved through Wisconsin from south to north. Easterly flow at low levels kept temperatures in northeast, north central and parts of central Wisconsin below freezing resulting in freezing rain and ice accumulations of 1/4 inch.

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 Green Bay, WI wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 29, 5:45 PM CST, 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 29, 5:45 PM CST, 15 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREEN BAY WI
545 PM CST MON JAN 29 2001

TEMPS ACRS E-C WI HV WARMED TO A DEG OR TWO ABV FREEZING. PCPN THUS FAR
HAS BEEN MAINLY DZ/FZDZ AHEAD OF THE MAIN BAND OF PCPN. MAIN PCPN BAND
WL OVERSPREAD THE AREA DURING THE EVENING. SINCE DWPTS IN E-C WI HV ALSO
COME UP TO NR FREEZING...SO DON/T THINK TEMPS WL FALL BACK WHEN MAIN
PCPN ARRIVES. HOWEVER...THE OUTDOOR SURFACE TEMPS WL PROBABLY BE A BIT
SLOWER TO WARM...SO THERE COULD STILL BE SOME GLAZING ON ROADWAYS/
SIDEWALKS. FOR THAT REASON...WL HOLD ON TO THE ADVISORY FOR AT LEAST A
COUPLE MORE HOURS.

STILL THINK A SWATH FROM C-NE WI WL SEE MAINLY FZRA TNGT. WL NEED TO
WATCH AMNTS AND SEE EXACTLY WHAT SFC TEMPS DO IN THESE AREAS.

N-C WI WAS ONLY UNDER THIN CI THIS AFTN...AND AS A RESULT TEMPS WARMED
AOA FREEZING. WL ALSO NEED TO MONITOR TEMPS THERE TO SEE JUST HOW FAR
THEY FALL BEFORE THE SIG PCPN ARRIVES.

NO CHANGES TO THE HEADLINES FOR NOW...BUT WL ADJUST FCST WORDING TO
REFLECT THE LATEST TRENDS. UPDATED ZONES WL BE OUT SHORTLY.

.GRB...WINTER STORM WARNING TONIGHT AND TUESDAY
       WIZ005-010>012-

       WINTER STORM WARNING TONIGHT
       WIZ013-018>021-030-031-

       WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY TONIGHT
       WIZ035>040-045-

SKOWRONSKI
WWW.CRH.NOAA.GOV/GRB

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

11 ice storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Ice Storm, Vilas

When
January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 30, 1:00 AM CST
Where
Vilas forecast zone
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
46.053, -89.515 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Oneida

When
January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 30, 1:00 AM CST
Where
Oneida forecast zone
Reported by
GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates
45.706, -89.522 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Forest

When
January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 30, 1:00 AM CST
Where
Forest forecast zone
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
45.667, -88.770 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Florence

When
January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 30, 1:00 AM CST
Where
Florence forecast zone
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
45.848, -88.398 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Marinette

When
January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 30, 1:00 AM CST
Where
Marinette forecast zone
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
45.351, -88.002 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Lincoln

When
January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 30, 1:00 AM CST
Where
Lincoln forecast zone
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
45.338, -89.735 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Langlade

When
January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 30, 1:00 AM CST
Where
Langlade forecast zone
Reported by
GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates
45.262, -89.072 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Menominee

When
January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 30, 1:00 AM CST
Where
Menominee forecast zone
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
45.004, -88.710 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Oconto

When
January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 30, 1:00 AM CST
Where
Oconto forecast zone
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
44.999, -88.221 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Marathon

When
January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 30, 1:00 AM CST
Where
Marathon forecast zone
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
44.898, -89.759 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Shawano

When
January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 30, 1:00 AM CST
Where
Shawano forecast zone
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
44.789, -88.765 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Ice Storm
Freezing rain accumulating a quarter inch or more of ice, or less where it caused significant damage.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Wisconsin in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Wisconsin, January 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: 5228127, 5228128, 5228129, 5228130, 5228131, 5228132, 5228133, 5228134, 5228135, 5228136, 5228137.