Scattered thunderstorms produced hail up to the size of quarters, as an upper level disturbance and cold front approached during the afternoon of August 14. Funnel clouds were also reported in the area, but none of these touched down.
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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 ARX wrote it up.
Scattered thunderstorms produced hail up to the size of quarters, as an upper level disturbance and cold front approached during the afternoon of August 14. Funnel clouds were also reported in the area, but none of these touched down.
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 La Crosse, WI wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 14, 1:45 PM CST, 4 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LA CROSSE WI 245 PM CDT THU AUG 14 2008 .SHORT TERM...TONIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY CURRENTLY...WEAK 500 MB TROUGH/SHORTWAVE ENERGY...ALONG WITH SOME WEAK SFC CONVERGENCE...WERE WORKING WITH LESS THAN 1000 J/KG MLCAPE TO FIRE SCATTERED SHOWERS/STORMS ACROSS THE AREA. THE SOUTHWARD MOVING PCPN WILL CONTINUE INTO THE EVENING...DIMINISHING AS THE WEAK FORCING LOSES THE INSTABILITY AND HIGH PRESSURE/DRIER AIR SINKS IN FROM THE NORTH. SOME ISOLATED STRONGER STORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE THROUGH SUNDOWN...WITH 1/2 INCH HAIL AND WIND GUSTS OF 30-40 MPH POSSIBLE...ALONG WITH TORRENTIAL DOWNPOURS. VERY INTERESTING UPPER LEVEL PATTERN TO PERSIST INTO THE WEEKEND...WITH A CLOSED 500 MB LOW DROPPING NEARLY DUE SOUTH ACROSS THE PLAINS AND FRONT RANGE OF THE ROCKIES...WHILE THE MAIN TROUGH AXIS SWINGS FROM THE GREAT LAKES SOUTHEAST ACROSS THE APPALACHIANS. AT THE SFC...A HIGH SLIDES SOUTHWARD ACROSS THE REGION...AND LOOKS TO BE THE DOMINANT WEATHER FEATURE FOR FRIDAY AND THROUGH THE WEEKEND. THIS SHOULD KEEP THE BULK OF THE REGION DRY...WITH PLENTY OF SUN. HOWEVER...BOTH THE 14.12Z GFS/NAM HINT AT DROPPING A SFC BOUNDARY ACROSS NORTHERN PARTS OF THE REGION BY SATURDAY NIGHT...ASSOCIATED WITH SHORTWAVE ENERGY OVER SOUTHEAST CANADA. WHILE THERE WILL BE NO GULF MOISTURE TO TAP INTO...AS THE WIND FIELDS HOLD FROM THE WEST TO NORTHWEST...850 MB MOISTURE TRANSPORT VECTORS INDICATE SOME MOISTURE TO WORK WITH. PW/S LOW...BUT STILL AROUND 1 1/4 INCH. MUCAPES SAT/SUN AFTERNOONS OF 500-1000 J/KG ALSO PROGGED...WITH 850-700 MB LAPSE RATES IN THE VICINITY OF THIS BOUNDARY OF 7.5-8 C/KM. NOT OVERLY DYNAMIC...BUT PROBABLY ENOUGH FOR SOME SMALL SHOWER/STORM CHANCES. THE QUESTION IS WHERE THIS SFC FEATURE WILL BE. NAM AND 09Z SREF ONLY HINT AT SOME QPF ACROSS NORTHERN/NORTHEAST WI SAT NIGHT/SUN...WHILE THE GFS IS DRY. CONSIDERING THE WEAK QPF RESPONSE...AND UNCERTAINTY OF WHERE THIS BOUNDARY COULD LIE...WILL KEEP POPS OUT OF THE FORECAST AREA FOR NOW. SOMETHING TO WATCH FOR THE LATER HALF OF THE WEEKEND THOUGH. PROBABLY WILL SEE A FEW MORE CLOUDS THAN NORMALLY EXPECTED WITH THE HIGH OVERHEAD AS A RESULT. AS FOR THE FOG POTENTIAL...DRIER EASTERLY FLOW TONIGHT IS NOT FAVORABLE FOR FOG FORMATION. HOWEVER...WINDS LOOK LIGHTER COME SAT MORNING...WHICH COULD RESULT IN SOME VALLEY FOG FORMATION. .LONG TERM...SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY MEDIUM RANGE MODEL TRENDS ARE TO CONTINUE TO BUILD IN A 500 MB RIDGE ACROSS THE REGION FOR THE EARLY PART OF NEXT WEEK...WHILE AT THE SFC A HIGH SETTLES ACROSS THE EASTERN GREAT LAKES...GRADUALLY TRANSITIONING OVER THE NEW ENGLAND STATES LATER IN THE WEEK. BY THU...A SOUTHERLY FLOW RETURNS...WITH GOOD MOISTURE RETURN/LOW LEVEL JET INFLUENCE THAT COULD LEAD TO SOME PCPN CHANCES. ONE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE GFS AND ECMWF IS THE ECMWF HINTS AT DROPPING A SFC BOUNDARY ACROSS THE REGION MONDAY/MONDAY NIGHT...WHILE THE GFS KEEPS THIS FEATURE FARTHER TO THE EAST. CONSIDERING THAT EVEN WITH THE ECMWF THE SMALL CHANCES WOULD BE MORE NORTH AND EAST...WILL LEAVE THIS PERIOD OF THE FORECAST DRY FOR NOW. && .AVIATION... LAST RIPPLE OF ENERGY ALOFT WILL CONTINUE SCT-NUMEROUS SHRA/TSRA THROUGH THE EVENING HOURS. LACK OF SURFACE FOCUS WILL LEAD TO LOW CONFIDENCE ON IF/WHEN THIS ACTIVITY HITS A TAF SITE. WILL CONTINUE WITH CB MENTION UNTIL STORMS ON RADAR SEEM MORE CERTAIN TO DIRECTLY INFLUENCE TAF SITES. THREATS FROM THESE WILL BE SMALL HAIL AND WIND GUSTS TO 30KT OR SO AS STORMS COLLAPSE. SHOULD SEE GENERAL VFR CONDS OUTSIDE OF THE SHRA/TSRA ACTIVITY...WITH DEEPENING/BUT LIGHT EASTERLY FLOW THROUGH THE NIGHT. SKIES SHOULD CLEAR WITH TIME. UNCERTAIN ABOUT VALLEY FOG POTENTIAL AT KLSE DUE TO STRONG SUBSIDENCE/EASTERLY FLOW WHICH IS A PRETTY DRY FLOW INTO THE OVERNIGHT. IN ADDITION...EASTERLY FLOW MAY TEND TO PUSH ANY FOG AWAY FROM KLSE AIRFIELD...TO WEST SIDE OF MS VLY. HOWEVER...ANY SHRA WILL ADD BOUNDARY LAYER MOISTURE WHICH SHOULD BE TRAPPED UNDER DEEPENING INVERSION THROUGH THE NIGHT. COULD GO EITHER WAY. FOR NOW...WILL PLAY BCFG WITH VFR CONDITIONS AND LET FURTHER TAF ISSUANCES RESOLVE THIS. BINAU && .ARX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WI...NONE. MN...NONE. IA...NONE. && RIECK
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LA CROSSE WI 224 PM CDT THU AUG 14 2008 IAZ008>011-018-019-029-030-MNZ079-086>088-094>096-WIZ017-029-032>034- 041>044-053>055-061-151000- ADAMS-ALLAMAKEE-BUFFALO-CHICKASAW-CLARK-CLAYTON-CRAWFORD-DODGE- FAYETTE-FILLMORE-FLOYD-GRANT-HOUSTON-HOWARD-JACKSON-JUNEAU-LA CROSSE- MITCHELL-MONROE-MOWER-OLMSTED-RICHLAND-TAYLOR-TREMPEALEAU-VERNON- WABASHA-WINNESHIEK-WINONA- 224 PM CDT THU AUG 14 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PARTS OF NORTHEAST IOWA... SOUTHEAST MINNESOTA...AND SOUTHWEST INTO CENTRAL WISCONSIN. .DAY ONE...THROUGH TONIGHT SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE INTO THE MIDDLE EVENING HOURS...MAINLY WEST OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER AND INTO EXTREME SOUTHWEST WISCONSIN. THE STRONGEST STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF HAIL RANGING IN SIZE FROM PEA TO DIME SIZE...AND WIND GUSTS TO 40 MPH... THOUGH THESE TYPES OF THREATS WILL BE ISOLATED AT BEST. THE MAIN THREATS WITH THESE SCATTERED STORMS WILL BE DEADLY CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING STRIKES...AND SINCE STORMS WILL BE SLOW MOVING...HEAVY DOWNPOURS WHICH MAY BRING A QUICK INCH OF RAIN IN A HALF HOURS TIME...WITH STREET FLOODING IN URBAN AREAS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER GROUPS SHOULD MONITOR THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT THROUGH THE EARLY EVENING...AND REPORT ANY HAIL OR GUSTY WINDS. ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED. .EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT COORDINATION... NO CALL IS SCHEDULED. BINAU
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LA CROSSE WI
233 PM CDT THU AUG 14 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0220 PM HAIL ROCHESTER 44.01N 92.48W
08/14/2008 E0.75 INCH OLMSTED MN AMATEUR RADIO
PEA TO DIME SIZED HAIL BEING REPORTED IN ROCHESTER.
COVERING DECK. ALSO 1.50 INCHES OF RAIN.
&&
BINAUThe La Crosse radar (KARX), 102 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:49 UTC.
2 funnel cloud, 1 hail, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Hail ranged in size from dimes to quarters, which ripped leaves off of trees.
Numerous, brief funnel clouds were reported to KTTC-TV by technicians at a wind farm in Mower County.
A funnel cloud was reported, which lasted about five minutes.
A large tree was blown down, blocking the road, in Marcussen Park near the intersection of Main Street South and 8th Avenue.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Minnesota in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, August 2008
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: 122923, 122926, 122925, 122924.