A line of severe thunderstorms moved east of Racine and Kenosha counties. Powerful northwest winds gusting to 58 knots (67 mph) were noted at the Racine Wastewater Treatment Plant on the Lake Michigan shoreline as the storms initially moved out over the lake, and 50 kt (58 mph) peak gusts out of the southeast were registered at the GLERL site in Kenosha, on the back side of the storms.
Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS MKX wrote it up.
A line of severe thunderstorms moved east of Racine and Kenosha counties. Powerful northwest winds gusting to 58 knots (67 mph) were noted at the Racine Wastewater Treatment Plant on the Lake Michigan shoreline as the storms initially moved out over the lake, and 50 kt (58 mph) peak gusts out of the southeast were registered at the GLERL site in Kenosha, on the back side of the storms. At this coastal site, sustained winds were 35 kts (40 mph) or higher between 0855 and 0955CST. The southeast backside winds were due to a wake-low which developed over southeast Wisconsin.
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 3, 2:25 AM CST, 4 hours 45 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI 325 AM CDT MON JUN 3 2002 FCST FOCUS ON MCS ACRS WI AND MN. IMPRESSIVE ISEN FORCING GENERATING LARGE SWATH OF TSRA ACRS SRN MN INTO WI THIS MRNG. OMA H8 AT 23C WHILE MPX AT 9C. SOME 1 INCH AMOUNTS IN NW PTN CWA. ANIMATION OF KMPX RADAR/IR SAT IMAGERY SHOWS RETURNS/COLDEST TOPS STARTING TO HEAD A LITTLE SOUTH OF EAST...SO WILL HAVE TO MAINTAIN VIGILANCE. CAN TAKE A LOT OF WATER BASED ON RIVER LEVELS AND FFG...SO WILL HOLD OFF ON AN FFA. CRUX OF FCST HINGES ON H8 JET MAXIMUM/DEGREE OF ISEN FORCING AND MOIST CONVERGENCE. MODELS IMPLY BEST FORCING WILL BE THRU 6Z TUE.... AND THEN H8 FLOW TURNS MORE WRLY. UNTIL THEN MOIST NOT A PROBLEM WITH MIXG RATIOS OF 6-7 G/KG IN FAVORED H7-H750 LYR. DECENT MOISTURE FLUX CONVERGENCE...THO BREAK IN ACTION A GOOD BET BY MID MORNING FOR ATMOS TO RELOAD...6Z META BEARS THIS OUT. WAVELETS IN THE FLOW HARD TO TIME WITH THIS PTN BUT MODELS SHOW SOME UPR LEVEL RIPPLES PASSING BY THROUGH TUE. WILL STILL KEEP HEFTY POPS RIGHT INTO TUE...THO 00 AND 06Z META PULLING BACK ON QPF AMOUNTS FOR TUE...THO AVN/NGM STILL QUITE BULLISH...WITH A STGR/MORE NWD POSND SFC LOW...THAN WHAT META IMPLIES. WILL GO AHEAD AND DRY THINGS OUT FOR WED AS UPR TROF PASSES BY TO THE EAST WITH DRYING NOTED AS ERLY AS 12Z WED WITH NO QPF PAINTED THEREAFTER. .MKX...NONE. COLLAR
WIZ046-047-051-052-056>060-062>072-031600- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI 600 AM CDT MON JUN 3 2002 ...HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR EMERGENCY PLANNERS... ...FOR SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST WISCONSIN... HAZARD...THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS TODAY AND TONIGHT. DISCUSSION...A VERY MOIST AND UNSTABLE AIRMASS WILL OVERRIDE A WARM FRONT SOUTH OF WISCONSIN TODAY AND TONIGHT. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS UNSTABLE AIRMASS MAY AFFECT FAR SOUTHERN WISCONSIN TODAY AND TONIGHT WITH LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. IN ADDITION...THUNDERSTORMS OCCURRING OVER ALL OF SOUTHERN WISCONSIN TODAY AND TONIGHT WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL. ALTHOUGH RIVERS ARE WELL BELOW FLOOD STAGE...ANY INTENSE OR PROLONGED RAINFALL COULD RESULT IN RAPID RISES OF RIVERS AND STREAMS TODAY AND TONIGHT. SPOTTER ACTIVATION...STORM SPOTTER GROUPS MAY BE NEEDED TODAY AND TONIGHT. OUTLOOK FOR TUESDAY...THERE IS A NO RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS. SOUTHERN WISCONSIN WILL REMAIN IN A MOIST BUT COOL AIRMASS. MODERATE TO LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL WILL STILL BE POSSIBLE WITH THUNDERSTORMS THAT DEVELOP.
The Milwaukee radar (KMKX), 62 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 13:08 UTC.
1 marine thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Lake Michigan in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather history
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: 5303009.