Winter Weather in Wisconsin, December 24, 2008

Name: Winter Weather in Wisconsin, December 24, 2008
Start: 2008-12-24T06:00
End: 2008-12-24T21:00
Location: Wisconsin

December 24, 2008 · NWS MKX · 20 events in 20 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 20 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: 4
Injuries: 8
Property damage: $50,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 20

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.

Yet another low pressure system moving from the Southern Plains to Lower Michigan dumped light to moderate snow amounts across south-central and southeast Wisconsin. Snow accumulations were generally 3 to 4 inches, but amounts tapered off to 2 inches near Lake Michigan from Milwaukee south to Kenosha. Northwest winds on the backside of the low pressure gusted on occasions to 30 knots (35 mph), resulting in blowing and drifting of the snow in open and exposed areas. Visibilities were reduced to around 1/2 mile at times. Snow and ice accumulations caused a 100-foot by 200-foot section of a roof to collapse on a building in Kohler (Sheboygan Co.), but there were no injuries. Dozens of vehicle accidents were reported by the media. A 2-vehicle accident near Cottage Grove (Dane Co.) claimed the life of an 18-year-old man. In the Town of Clyman (Dodge Co.), a 2-vehicle accident resulted in the deaths of a mother and her young boy, and 1 injury. Near Wisconsin Dells (Columbia Co.) a 60-year old women died in a roll-over, with 3 other people injured. A 4-vehicle accident near Gratiot (Lafayette Co.) resulted in 4 injuries. All of the fatalities and injuries in these vehicle incidents were indirectly-related to slippery road conditions.

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 Dec 23, 3:43 PM CST, 14 hours 17 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 23, 3:43 PM CST, 14 hours 17 minutes before

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Hazardous weather outlook, Dec 23, 4:29 PM CST, 13 hours 31 minutes before

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The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

20 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Weather, Marquette

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Marquette forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.820, -89.399 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Green Lake

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Green Lake forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.800, -89.045 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Fond du Lac

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Fond du Lac forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.754, -88.488 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Sheboygan

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Sheboygan forecast zone
Property damage: $50,000
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.756, -87.800 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Sauk

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Sauk forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.427, -89.948 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Columbia

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Columbia forecast zone
Deaths: 0 direct, 1 indirect
Injuries: 0 direct, 3 indirect
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.467, -89.334 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Dodge

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Dodge forecast zone
Deaths: 0 direct, 2 indirect
Injuries: 0 direct, 1 indirect
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.416, -88.707 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Washington

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Washington forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.369, -88.231 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Ozaukee

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Ozaukee forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.403, -87.891 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Iowa

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Iowa forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.001, -90.135 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Dane

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Dane forecast zone
Deaths: 0 direct, 1 indirect
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.067, -89.418 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Jefferson

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Jefferson forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.021, -88.776 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Waukesha

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Waukesha forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.018, -88.304 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Milwaukee

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Milwaukee forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.022, -87.929 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Lafayette

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Lafayette forecast zone
Injuries: 0 direct, 4 indirect
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.661, -90.132 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Green

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Green forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.680, -89.602 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Rock

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Rock forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.671, -89.072 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Walworth

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Walworth forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.669, -88.542 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Racine

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Racine forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.730, -87.812 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Kenosha

When: December 24, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where: Kenosha forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.573, -87.840 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

Event	Date	Age	Sex	Where	Kind
Winter Weather, Columbia	2008-12-24	60	Female	Vehicle/Towed Trailer	Indirect
Winter Weather, Dodge	2008-12-24	30	Female	Vehicle/Towed Trailer	Indirect
Winter Weather, Dodge	2008-12-24	1	Male	Vehicle/Towed Trailer	Indirect
Winter Weather, Dane	2008-12-24	18	Male	Vehicle/Towed Trailer	Indirect

What these are

Winter Weather: Snow, sleet or freezing rain below warning levels that still caused disruption, damage or casualties.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Wisconsin in 2008 Every state in 2008 This day in weather history Warnings in Wisconsin, December 2008

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 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 148173, 148174, 148175, 148176, 148177, 148178, 148180, 148181, 148182, 148183, 148184, 148185, 148186, 148187, 148188, 148189, 148190, 148191, 148192, 148193.