A strong cold front pushed through west central Wisconsin during the early morning hours of December 12th. Shortly after dawn, winds turned to the northwest and increased to 25 to 35 MPH with gusts as high as 50 MPH.
Every event with a place to put it; 5 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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 MPX wrote it up.
A strong cold front pushed through west central Wisconsin during the early morning hours of December 12th. Shortly after dawn, winds turned to the northwest and increased to 25 to 35 MPH with gusts as high as 50 MPH. The highest wind gusts recorded in west central Wisconsin included 48 MPH at New Richmond, 47 MPH at Hager City, and 45 MPH at Eau Claire and Menomonie.
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 Twin Cities, MN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 12, 4:15 AM CST, 3 hours 45 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN 415 AM CST SUN DEC 12 2004 .DISCUSSION... SEASONALLY DEEP LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM (988 MB) SITUATED ALONG THE NORTHSHORE OF MN THIS MORNING. THE CENTRAL PRESSURE OF THIS LOW IS NOT EXPECTED TO DEEPEN FURTHER AS IT TRACKS SOUTHEAST ACROSS LAKE SUPERIOR. HOWEVER...WITH GRADIENT BEHIND SYSTEM...TOGETHER WITH ISALLOBARIC CONTRIBUTION TO WIND...WE DECIDED TO GO WITH A HIGH WIND WARNING ACROSS MOST OF OUR MINNESOTA COUNTIES WITH WIND ADVISORIES INTO MOST OF OUR WISCONSIN COUNTIES. LOCAL RUN OF WSETA (00 GMT) SHOWED 65 TO 70 KTS AT 850 MB WITH 40 TO 45 KTS AT 925 MB WHILE (06 GMT) RUN BACKS OFF SOMEWHAT ON 850 MB WINDS (NOW 50 TO 58 KTS) BUT NOW INCREASES WIND STRENGTH AT 925 MB TO AROUND 45 TO 47 KTS BETWEEN 17 AND 20 GMT. ASSESSMENT OF DOWNWARD TRANSPORT POTENTIAL FROM BUFKIT SHOWS STEEP LAPSE RATES THROUGH 830 MB SO WARNING CRITERIA WIND GUSTS OF 50 KTS SEEMS LIKE A SURE BET. BUFKIT ALSO SHOWS SOME LOW LEVEL CAPE THAT SUGGESTS SOME SNOW SHOWER ACTIVITY AS THE COLD AIR MOVES IN. HIGH PRESSURE RIDGE PUSHES INTO MN LATE TUESDAY. LONGER TERM...WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY NEW GFS INDICATING RATHER MILD PACIFIC FLOW PATTERN THROUGH MUCH OF THE PERIOD. COUPLE OF SHORT WAVES MOVE THROUGH WED AND FRI WITH WHAT APPEARS TO BE A REPEAT WIND EVENT EARLY NEXT WEEK AS ANOTHER SURGE OF ARCTIC AIR ARRIVES NEXT SUNDAY. LITTLE CHANGE TO CURRENT GRIDS ANTICIPATED. && MPX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... .MN...HIGH WIND WARNING UNTIL 6 PM CST THIS EVENING MNZ041>043-047>051-054>059-064>067-073>075-082-083-091-092- HIGH WIND WARNING 9 AM UNTIL 6 PM CST THIS EVENING MNZ060>063-068>070-076>078-084-085-093-WIZ023-024- .WI...WIND ADVISORY 9 AM UNTIL 6 PM CST THIS EVENING MNZ044-045-052-053-WIZ014>016-025>028- &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN 550 AM CST SUN DEC 12 2004 MNZ043-050-051-059>063-068>070-076>078-084-085-093-WIZ023-024-131200- ANOKA-BENTON-CARVER-DAKOTA-FREEBORN-GOODHUE-HENNEPIN-LE SUEUR- MORRISON-PIERCE-RAMSEY-RICE-SCOTT-SHERBURNE-ST CROIX-STEELE-WASECA- WASHINGTON-WRIGHT- 550 AM CST SUN DEC 12 2004 ...HIGHS WIND WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 9AM TO 6 PM CST TODAY... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EAST CENTRAL AND SOUTH CENTRAL MINNESOTA...AND WEST CENTRAL WISCONSIN. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT STRONG NORTHWEST WINDS SUSTAINED FROM 25 TO 30 MPH WITH WIND GUSTS TO 58 MPH ARE EXPECTED DURING THE DAY. THE WINDS WILL DIMINISH SOME BY EVENING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY OR TONIGHT. MNZ041-042-047>049-054>058-064>067-073>075-082-083-091-092-131200- BLUE EARTH-BROWN-CHIPPEWA-DOUGLAS-FARIBAULT-KANDIYOHI-LAC QUI PARLE- MARTIN-MCLEOD-MEEKER-NICOLLET-POPE-REDWOOD-RENVILLE-SIBLEY-STEARNS- STEVENS-SWIFT-TODD-WATONWAN-YELLOW MEDICINE- 550 AM CST SUN DEC 12 2004 ...HIGH WIND WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM CST THIS EVENING... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTH CENTRAL MINNESOTA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT STRONG NORTHWEST WINDS SUSTAINED FROM 30 TO 35 MPH WITH GUSTS OF 55 TO 60 MPH ARE EXPECTED OVER THE REGION TODAY. EXPECT THE WINDS TO DIMINISH SOME BY EVENING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY OR TONIGHT. MNZ044-045-052-053-WIZ014>016-025>028-131200- BARRON-CHIPPEWA-CHISAGO-DUNN-EAU CLAIRE-ISANTI-KANABEC-MILLE LACS- PEPIN-POLK-RUSK- 550 AM CST SUN DEC 12 2004 ...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 9 AM THIS MORNING TO 6 PM CST THIS EVENING... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EAST CENTRAL MINNESOTA AND WEST CENTRAL WISCONSIN. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT STRONG NORTHWEST WINDS FROM 20 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 45 MPH ARE EXPECTED OVER MUCH OF THE REGION TODAY. THE WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO DIMINISH SOMEWHAT BY EVENING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY OR TONIGHT.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
5 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Wisconsin in 2004Every state in 2004This day in weather historyWarnings in Wisconsin, December 2004
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: 5431822, 5431823, 5431824, 5431825, 5431826.