Wisconsin, 2002

Flood in Wisconsin, April 14 to 19, 2002

April 14 to 19, 2002 · NWS DLH · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Dense snowpack, temperatures in the 80s, and 3 inches of rain contributed to widespread flooding in parts of Sawyer County. Moose Lake, a flowage of the Chippewa River, was at its highest level since 1941.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 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
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  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$50,000
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 DLH wrote it up.

Dense snowpack, temperatures in the 80s, and 3 inches of rain contributed to widespread flooding in parts of Sawyer County. Moose Lake, a flowage of the Chippewa River, was at its highest level since 1941. Many boathouses and cabins on Moose Lake were flooded. Although numerous roads were covered with water, damage was minimal.

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 Duluth, MN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 14, 2:45 AM CST, 5 hours 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 14, 2:45 AM CST, 5 hours 15 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DULUTH MN
345 AM CDT SUN APR 14 2002

MODELS DOING GOOD JOB WITH DAKOTAS S/WV. EXPECT TROF TO MOVE THROUGH
MOST OF MN THIS MORNING...WITH THE EXCEPTION OF ARROWHEAD...AND MOVE
ACROSS WI THIS AFTERNOON. HAVE WORDED FCST TO REFLECT SHOWERS ENDING
WITH TROF PASSAGE. HAVE BOOSTED TEMPS TO CLOSER TO GUIDANCE FOR TDAY
AND TMR AS OUR FCSTS HAVE BEEN RUNNING ON THE COOL SIDE.

SERIES OF WAVES HEADED FOR AREA NEXT FEW DAYS. NOT TOO MUCH
DIFFERENCE IN THE MODELS THROUGH MONDAY....KIND OF A REPEAT TNT WITH
NEXT S/WV MOVING IN LATE TNT AND THEN THROUGH THE AREA DURING THE
DAY MONDAY.  NEXT SIGNIFICANT RAINS THO WILL WAIT UNTIL TUESDAY.

.DLH...NONE.

CLC

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flood, Sawyer

When
April 14, 8:00 AM CST to April 19, 8:00 AM CST
Where
Sawyer forecast zone
Property damage
$50,000
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
45.880, -91.145 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

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.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Wisconsin in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Wisconsin, April 2002

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: 5306174.