A strengthening upper level jet, in excess of 90 knots, contributed to the develop of elevated thunderstorms ahead of a warm front that moved across Wisconsin.
Every event with a place to put it. 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 GRB wrote it up.
A strengthening upper level jet, in excess of 90 knots, contributed to the develop of elevated thunderstorms ahead of a warm front that moved across Wisconsin.
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 Green Bay, WI wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 25, 10:33 AM CST, 3 hours 32 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREEN BAY WI 1133 AM CDT SUN MAY 25 2008 .UPDATE...TOOK OUT MENTION OF PRECIPITATION FOR FOX VALLEY AND LAKESHORE COUNTIES FOR TODAY PERIOD. TAMDAR SOUNDINGS FROM ATW, CWA AND RHI SHOW CONVECTIVE TEMPERATURES BETWEEN 83F AT RHINELANDER TO 90F AT APPLETON. THESE TEMPERATURES WILL OBVIOUSLY NOT BE REACHED, SO WE WILL HAVE TO WAIT FOR LINE OF THUNDERSTROMS TO ARRIVE FROM MINNESOTA LATER TODAY. RDM && .PREV DISCUSSION...ISSUED AT 513 AM CDT SUN MAY 25 2008... SHORT TERM...TODAY THROUGH MONDAY. THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING SEVERE WEATHER THREAT IS THE MAIN FOCUS OF THIS FORECAST. ELEVATED CONVECTION ONGOING OVER NORTH CENTRAL AND CENTRAL WI...ASSOCIATED WITH SHORT WAVE MOVING THROUGH NORTHERN MN. LINE OF CONVECTION ON LEADING EDGE OF MID LEVEL INSTABILITY GRADIENT. AREA HAS HELD TOGETHER...THOUGH EXPECT DIMINISHING TREND AS IT MOVES EAST...GIVEN WEAKENING OF LLVL JET AND ENCOUNTER WITH DRY ATMOSPHERE IN PLACE OVER NORTHEAST WI. HAVE GONE WITH SCATTERED TO ISOLATED WORDING THIS MORNING...WILL LIKELY NEED TO UPDATE THIS MORNING AS TRENDS PLAY OUT. 100+ UPPER JET WILL MOVE ACROSS WISCONSIN THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. MODELS STILL BULLISH ON BRINGING SIG LOW LEVEL MOISTURE NORTHWARD. THEY ARE NOT VERIFYING BADLY WITH LOWER 60 DEW POINTS INTO SOUTHERN MN AT THIS TIME. MODELS SHOWING CAPES AROUND 2K OVER CENTRAL WI BY 00Z WITH SFC DEW POINTS AROUND 67 DEG. MODIFYING FORECAST SOUNDING OVER THAT AREA WITH DEW POINT IN LOWER 60S STILL GIVE CAPES NEAR 1.5K. LOCAL CONVECTIVE CHECKLIST POINTS TO LARGE HAIL WITH WET BULB ZEROS BETWEEN 7 AND 10K FT AND MOD INSTABILITY. SHEAR AND HELICITY VALUES WOULD SUPPORT SUPERCELL DEVELOPMENT EXPECTED INITIATION STILL TO BE IN SOUTHWEST WI/MN LATER THIS AFTERNOON AHEAD OF SURFACE FRONT. AGAIN ALL DEPENDENT ON AMOUNT OF SUNSHINE. SAT SHOWING EXTENSIVE STRATUS FIELD EASTERN MN/IA...MOVING INTO WI. MODELS SUGGEST THIS WILL MIX OUT BY AFTERNOON. NEXT SHIFT WILL NEED TO MONITOR. HAVE DROPPED TEMPS SLIGHTLY TODAY IN THE EAST WHERE FLOW WILL STILL BE OUT OF SOUTH AND SOUTHEAST. COLD FRONT EXPECTED TO MOVE THROUGH 15Z TO 18Z MON. HAVE TRENDED MAX TEMPS FOR MORNING/NOON TIME PERIOD. ABRUPT WIND SHIFT TO THE NORTH ALONG LAKE WITH WINDS EXPECTED TO BE STRONG FOR A BRIEF PERIOD TO MAKE FOR MORE SIGNIFICANT TEMP DROP FAR EASTERN CWA. LONG TERM...MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY. MODEL SOLUTIONS ARE SIMILAR FOR THIS PART OF THE FORECAST. A SURFACE RIDGE IS FORECAST TO BECOME THE DOMINANT WEATHER FEATURE ACROSS THE AREA THROUGH THE MIDDLE PART OF THE WEEK. DRIER...COLDER AIR BEING ADVECTED INTO THE NORTHERN PART OF THE STATE...ALONG WITH DIMINISHING WINDS...ON MONDAY NIGHT WILL ALLOW TEMPERATURES TO FALL INTO THE LOWER TO MIDDLE 30S ACROSS THE NORTHERN PART OF THE CWA. WIDESPREAD FROST SHOULD DEVELOP THERE BY LATE EVENING. THE CENTER OF THE HIGH IS THEN FORECAST TO MOVE TO WISCONSIN BY TUESDAY NIGHT...SO CONDITIONS SHOULD ONCE AGAIN BE FAVORABLE FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF WIDESPREAD FROST IN THE NORTH. TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED TO BE BELOW NORMAL UNTIL THE HIGH PASSES TO THE EAST OF WISCONSIN. TEMPERATURES WILL THEN START TO WARM UP A BIT ON THE RETURN FLOW SIDE OF THE HIGH...AHEAD OF AN APPROACHING SURFACE SYSTEM THAT WILL BRING A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TO THE WESTERN PART OF THE CWA STARTING THURSDAY NIGHT. AVIATION...VFR/MVFR CIGS EXPECTED THIS AM WITH ISOLATED TO SCATTERED SHRA/TSRA ACTIVITY. PERIOD OF CLEARING EXPECTED LATER MORN/AFTN THEN MORE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS LIKELY LATE AFTERNOON AND EVENING. SOME OF THESE STORMS ARE EXPECTED TO BE STRONG...ESPECIALLY OVER CENTRAL WI SITES. && .GRB WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREEN BAY WI 535 AM CDT SUN MAY 25 2008 WIZ005-010>013-018>022-030-031-035>040-045-048>050-073-074-261300- VILAS-ONEIDA-FOREST-FLORENCE-NORTHERN MARINETTE-LINCOLN-LANGLADE- MENOMINEE-NORTHERN OCONTO-DOOR-MARATHON-SHAWANO-WOOD-PORTAGE- WAUPACA-OUTAGAMIE-BROWN-KEWAUNEE-WAUSHARA-WINNEBAGO-CALUMET- MANITOWOC-SOUTHERN MARINETTE-SOUTHERN OCONTO- 535 AM CDT SUN MAY 25 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL WISCONSIN...EAST CENTRAL WISCONSIN...NORTH CENTRAL WISCONSIN AND NORTHEAST WISCONSIN. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A NORTHWARD MOVING WARM FRONT AND WEAK COLD FRONT WILL PROVIDE THE FOCUS FOR THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT THIS AFTERNOON INTO TONIGHT. DEPENDING ON THE AMOUNT OF CLEARING THAT IS REALIZED AFTER THIS MORNINGS CONVECTION...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS COULD FORM OVER WESTERN WISCONSIN AND MOVE ACROSS THE COUNTY WARNING AREA DURING THE LATE AFTERNOON AND EVENING HOURS. THERE IS A POTENTIAL FOR VERY LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS...ESPECIALLY OVER CENTRAL WISCONSIN. AN ISOLATED TORNADO IS ALSO POSSIBLE. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY CANADIAN HIGH PRESSURE BUILDING IN LATER MONDAY AND TUESDAY WILL LEAD TO ANOTHER FEW DAYS OF BELOW NORMAL TEMPERATURES WITH WIDESPREAD FROST POSSIBLE OVER NORTHER WISCONSIN. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL LIKELY BE NEEDED THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING. LMZ521-522-541>543-261300- THE BAY OF GREEN BAY SOUTH OF A LINE FROM CEDAR RIVER MI TO ROCK ISLAND PASSAGE-LAKE MICHIGAN FROM WASHINGTON ISLAND TO SHEBOYGAN- 535 AM CDT SUN MAY 25 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF LAKE MICHIGAN. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT THERE IS A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS TODAY AND TONIGHT. A FEW OF THESE STORMS TONIGHT MAY BE STRONG TO SEVERE. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY A COLD FRONT WILL SWEEP ACROSS THE AREA MONDAY...AND WINDS MAY ABRUPTLY SHIFT TO THE NORTH TO NORTHEAST AND INCREASE MONDAY AFTERNOON TO A POINT WHERE THEY COULD BE A HAZARD TO SMALL CRAFT.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREEN BAY WI 212 PM CDT SUN MAY 25 2008 WIZ005-010-251945- ONEIDA-VILAS- 212 PM CDT SUN MAY 25 2008 ...THUNDERSTORMS MOVING TOWARD FAR NORTH-CENTRAL WISCONSIN... AT 205 PM...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 45 MILES WEST OF LAC DU FLAMBEAU...OR 15 MILES WEST OF PARK FALLS...MOVING EAST AT 45 MPH. HAIL...HEAVY RAIN...AND FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING...ARE OCCURRING WITH THIS STORM. IF THE STORM MAINTAINS ITS STRENGTH...IT WILL MOVE INTO WESTERN VILAS COUNTY SHORTLY AFTER 3 PM. ADDITIONAL STORMS WERE FORMING OVER CENTRAL PRICE COUNTY AND MAY AFFECT WESTERN ONEIDA COUNTY. STAY AWAY FROM HIGH OBJECTS OUTDOORS SUCH AS TREES. SEEK SHELTER IN A STURDY STRUCTURE UNTIL THIS STORM HAS PASSED. JKL
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREEN BAY WI
303 PM CDT SUN MAY 25 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0302 PM HAIL MANITOWISH WATERS 46.13N 89.88W
05/25/2008 E0.25 INCH VILAS WI PUBLIC
JUST STARTED AT 301 PM.
&&
JKLThe Marquette radar (KMQT), 188 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:06 UTC.
18 hail, 4 thunderstorm wind, 1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
A research meteorologist, from the University of Wisconsin Space Science and Engineering Center, reported vehicle damage caused by lime size hail on the east end of Middle Sugarbush Lake.
Large hail damaged vehicles and structures near St. Germain. A vehicle dealership on the east side of the city suffered the most extensive damage. Every car on the lot sustained damaged. Every vehicle at a repair shop in town was damaged except for a 1972 Pontiac Lemans. This was likely due to the thicker steel used in the body of the Lemans. One man was unable to get his hand around a hailstone that crashed through the kitchen skylight of his home.
Golf ball size hail dented several cars near Alvin.
Large hail fell near Tipler but there was little rain or wind with it.
A spotter observed nickel size hail that stripped leaves and small twigs from trees. The hail was two inches deep.
A spotter reported nickel size hail coving the ground.
Downburst thunderstorm winds blew down a dozen large trees and damaged serveral sheds in rural Custer.
A barn was damaged, trees blown down, and three silo tops sustained damage as strong thunderstorm winds hit just south of Stratford.
A weak tornado briefly touched down about five miles southeast of Mosinee. Several apple trees were damaged (DI 27, DOD 2) in a narrow path. A pine tree fell on a shed as well. The tornado was on the ground for less than 30 seconds.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Wisconsin in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Wisconsin, 2008Warnings in Wisconsin, May 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: 101284, 101286, 101287, 101290, 101293, 101264, 101238, 101248, 101239, 101240, 101245, 101249, 101251, 101246, 101277, 101243, 101267, 101272, 101242, 101275, 101241, 101244, 101247.