Damaging Winds and Lightning Strike in Wisconsin, July 21, 2005

Name: Damaging Winds and Lightning Strike in Wisconsin, July 21, 2005
Start: 2005-07-21T07:30
End: 2005-07-21T11:38
Location: Wisconsin

July 21, 2005 · NWS MKX · 7 events in 5 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 2 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: $56,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 7

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.

Scattered severe thunderstorms developed during the mid to late morning hours on July 21st, across mainly southeast Wisconsin, in response to a disturbance riding along a quasi-stationary front. These storms produced primarily damaging winds that uprooted trees, and/or damaged power lines. The earliest cluster of severe storms affected northern Green County. A home in New Glarus was damaged after the powerful winds pushed a tree on its roof. One storm developed along Interstate-43 in Rock County and headed northeast through the central part of Waukesha County with winds of 56 to 61 knots (65 to 70 mph). From there it passed through Ozaukee County and out over Lake Michigan. Scattered areas of tree damage resulted from this storm, especially in the Waukesha and Brookfield areas of Waukesha County. Lightning also struck a home in Grafton (Ozaukee Co.) and set it on fire with this storm. Another storm produced a funnel cloud south of Beaver Dam (Dodge Co.).

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 Jul 21, 2:22 AM CST, 5 hours 8 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 21, 2:22 AM CST, 5 hours 8 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI
322 AM CDT THU JUL 21 2005

.DISCUSSION...FORECAST FOCUS ON CONVECTION TODAY AND CHANCES FOR
SATURDAY.

RADAR AND SAT LOOPS SHOW LARGE MCS MOVING THROUGH MINNESOTA AND
IOWA WHICH SHOULD TRACK ACROSS CWA THIS MORNING INTO EARLY
AFTERNOON. STRONG MID LEVEL ISENT LIFT EXPECTED ALSO THIS AFTERNOON
DUE TO OVERRUNNING OF 850 BARO ZONE ALONG WITH SHORT WAVE. SOME
CONVECTION MAY EXTEND INTO EVENING HOURS.

NEW NAM INDICATES STRONG SHORT WAVE ROTATING ACROSS CWA
SATURDAY WITH OVERRUNNING 850 BARO ZONE AND MID LEVEL WAA. WILL
INCREASE POPS A BIT.

LONGER RANGE MODELS INDICATE SERIES OF SHORT WAVES AND SURFACE
TROUGHS. CONVECTION WILL BE POSSIBLE AT TIMES SUNDAY THROUGH
TUESDAY.

.MKX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE.

&&

Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 21, 5:26 AM CST, 2 hours 4 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI
626 AM CDT THU JUL 21 2005

WIZ046-047-051-052-056>060-062>072-221000-
COLUMBIA-DANE-DODGE-FOND DU LAC-GREEN-GREEN LAKE-IOWA-JEFFERSON-
KENOSHA-LAFAYETTE-MARQUETTE-MILWAUKEE-OZAUKEE-RACINE-ROCK-SAUK-
SHEBOYGAN-WALWORTH-WASHINGTON-WAUKESHA-
626 AM CDT THU JUL 21 2005

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST
WISCONSIN.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

PATCHY DENSE FOG WILL REDUCE VISIBILITIES TO LESS THAN A QUARTER
MILE IN SOME LOCATIONS EARLY THIS MORNING.

THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS LATER THIS MORNING AND
THIS AFTERNOON...WITH SOME STORMS POSSIBLY LINGERING INTO THE
EVENING. THE MAIN THREAT APPEARS TO BE DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE
HAIL.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE DURING THE PERIOD SATURDAY
THROUGH TUESDAY.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

ACTIVATION OF SPOTTERS IS NOT ANTICIPATED AT THIS TIME.

&&

DETAILED WEATHER INFORMATION IS AVAILABLE ON THE NWS MILWAUKEE
WEB-PAGE...WEATHER.GOV/MILWAUKEE     /LOWER CASE/

LMZ643>646-665-221000-
NORTH POINT LIGHTHOUSE TO WIND POINT-
PORT WASHINGTON TO NORTH POINT LIGHTHOUSE-
SHEBOYGAN WI TO PORT WASHINGTON-
WIND POINT TO WINTHROP HARBOR ILLINOIS-
626 AM CDT THU JUL 21 2005

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE WISCONSIN NEARSHORE WATERS
OF LAKE MICHIGAN.

.DAY ONE...THIS EVENING AND TONIGHT

PATCHY DENSE FOG MAY REDUCE VISIBILITIES TO LESS THAN A QUARTER
MILE IN SPOTS EARLY THIS MORNING.

THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS LATER THIS MORNING AND
THIS AFTERNOON...WITH SOME STORMS POSSIBLY LINGERING INTO THE
EVENING. THE MAIN THREAT APPEARS TO BE DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE
HAIL.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE DURING THE PERIOD SATURDAY
THROUGH TUESDAY.

&&

DETAILED WEATHER INFORMATION AVAILABLE ON THE NWS MILWAUKEE
WEB-PAGE...WEATHER.GOV/MILWAUKEE     /LOWER CASE/

NJ

The radar

The Milwaukee radar (KMKX), 90 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 13:31 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 thunderstorm wind, 1 funnel cloud, 1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Green

When: July 21, 7:30 AM CST
Where: Green County, New Glarus
Measured: 56 kt (64 mph) estimated gust
Property damage: $20,000
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 42.817, -89.633

Thunderstorm Wind, Jefferson

When: July 21, 9:18 AM CST
Where: Jefferson County, 1 mi SW of Watertown
Measured: 53 kt (61 mph) measured gust
Property damage: $1,000
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 43.183, -88.733

Thunderstorm Wind, Waukesha

When: July 21, 9:40 AM CST
Where: Waukesha County, New Berlin
Measured: 59 kt (68 mph) measured gust
Property damage: $5,000
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 42.983, -88.117

Thunderstorm Wind, Waukesha

When: July 21, 9:43 AM CST to 9:55 AM CST
Where: Waukesha County, 4 mi S of Waukesha
Measured: 61 kt (70 mph) estimated gust
Property damage: $10,000
Reported by: NWS EMPLOYEE(OFF DUTY)
Coordinates: 42.967, -88.217

Thunderstorm wind gusts of hurricane force caused scattered areas of large tree damage from the Waukesha area northeast to Brookfield.

Funnel Cloud, Dodge

When: July 21, 9:45 AM CST to 10:45 AM CST
Where: Dodge County, 8 mi S of Beaver Dam
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 43.416, -88.707 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Thunderstorm Wind, Ozaukee

When: July 21, 10:28 AM CST
Where: Ozaukee County, Saukville
Measured: 56 kt (64 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 43.383, -87.933

Lightning, Ozaukee

When: July 21, 11:38 AM CST
Where: Ozaukee County, Grafton
Property damage: $20,000
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 43.403, -87.891 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lightning struck a house, setting it on fire.

What these are

Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
Funnel Cloud: A rotating column of cloud extending from a thunderstorm that did not reach the ground.
Lightning: A lightning strike that killed, injured or caused damage.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Wisconsin in 2005 Every state in 2005 This day in weather history Warnings in Wisconsin, July 2005

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: 5464043, 5464045, 5464039, 5464040, 5464044, 5464041, 5464042.