Waterspout, Sheboygan to Pt Washington Wi
- When
- June 14, 11:30 AM CST to 11:33 AM CST
- Where
- Sheboygan to Pt Washington Wi marine zone, 4 mi NE of Port Washington
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 43.417, -87.817
Waterspout in Lake Michigan, June 14, 2002
). It was observed by a trained spotter who was traveling south along Interstate 43.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it. 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
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- 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.
A short-lived waterspout spun up about 1/2 mile out over the nearshore waters of Lake Michigan northeast of Port Washington (Ozaukee Co.). It was observed by a trained spotter who was traveling south along Interstate 43. Scattered thunderstorms developed and moved southeast along a surface trough/shear line that extended northwest to southeast from Lake Winnebago through Ozaukee County to east of Milwaukee. Apparently, a vortex on the shear line was stretched vertically by the updraft tower of a thunderstorm. The width of the waterspout at the water surface was about 10 to 15 yards. No damage was noted.
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 Jun 14, 2:41 AM CST, 8 hours 49 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jun 14, 2:41 AM CST, 8 hours 49 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI 341 AM CDT FRI JUN 14 2002 FCST FOCUS IS ON LRG UPR LOW SLOWLY PASSING THRU RGN. MODELS IN GOOD AGREEMENT WITH TIMING OF UPR LVL LOW AND COLD POOL OF AIR MOVING SLOWLY ACROSS STATE TODAY. INSTABILITY DUE TO -20C 500 MB TEMPS...AND SPOKES OF ENERGY ROTATING AROUND SYSTEM WILL PRODUCE SHRA AND TSTMS ACROSS CWA. FIRST SPOKE ROTATING INTO WRN CWA ATTM WITH ISOLATED SHRA CROSSING CWA THIS AM. THEN MORE WIDESPREAD SHRA AND A FEW TSTMS THIS AFTERNOON AS COLDEST AIR CROSSES SRN WI. CYCLONIC FLOW AND A SECOND SURGE OF COLD AIR WL CAUSE INSTABILITY SHRA DURING THE DAY BOTH SATURDAY AND MAINLY ACROSS THE ERN CWA ON SUNDAY...BEFORE SYSTEM FINALLY PULLS FAR ENOUGH EASTWARD FOR THE BEGINNING OF THE WEEK. TEMPS WL RMN NR OR BLO SEASONAL NORMALS. .MKX...NONE. NJ
In the hours before
Special weather statement, Jun 14, 9:17 AM CST, 2 hours 13 minutes before
WIZ046-047-051-052-056>060-062>072-142300- COLD AIR FUNNELS NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI 1017 AM CDT FRI JUN 14 2002 ...COLD AIR FUNNELS POSSIBLE ACROSS SOUTHERN WISCONSIN... A LARGE UPPER LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL DRIFT ACROSS SOUTHERN WISCONSIN TODAY. EXTREMELY COLD AIR ALOFT ASSOCIATED WITH THE LOW...WILL LEAD TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF SHOWERS AND A FEW THUNDERSTORMS. COLD AIR FUNNELS OFTEN OCCUR UNDER THESE CONDITIONS. STUDIES OF COLD AIR FUNNELS SHOW THEY RARELY TOUCH DOWN...AND IF SO...DO LITTLE TO NO DAMAGE. THESE FUNNEL CLOUDS NORMALLY PROTRUDE A FEW HUNDRED FEET DOWNWARD FROM THE PARENT CLOUD...ROTATE OR SPIN LIKE A TOP...AND LAST A FEW MINUTES BEFORE DISSIPATING. REPORTS OF SMALL FUNNEL CLOUDS MAY BE EXPECTED OVER SOUTHEAST AND SOUTH CENTRAL WISCONSIN TODAY. WARNINGS MAY BE ISSUED IF ANY OF THEM TOUCH THE GROUND.
The radar
The Milwaukee radar (KMKX), 78 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 17:32 UTC.
Event by event
1 waterspout. Local standard time, as filed.
What these are
- Waterspout
- A tornado over water. One that moves ashore is filed as a tornado from the coastline on.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Hail in Colorado, June 14, 2002
- Flash Flood in New York, June 14, 2002
- Damaging Wind in North Carolina, June 14, 2002
- Flash Flooding and Damaging Wind in New York, June 14 to 15, 2002
- Damaging Wind in North Carolina, June 14, 2002
- Damaging Wind in Texas, June 14, 2002
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Ohio, June 14, 2002
- Flash Flood in Pennsylvania, June 14, 2002
- Damaging Wind in North Carolina, June 14, 2002
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Alabama, June 14, 2002
- Lightning Strike in Alabama, June 14, 2002
- Damaging Wind in Florida, June 14, 2002
More
Every storm in Lake Michigan in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather history
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: 5302990.