Thunderstorms that produced large hail, wind damage and a tornado over the land, produced a water spout about 1 to 2 miles offshore over Lake Michigan.
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.
Thunderstorms that produced large hail, wind damage and a tornado over the land, produced a water spout about 1 to 2 miles offshore over Lake Michigan.
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 22, 4:57 PM CST, 1 hour 8 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREEN BAY WI 557 PM CDT SUN MAY 22 2011 .UPDATE... SEVERE WEATHER AND TORNADO THREAT CONTINUES THIS EVENING. STORMS OVER FOX VALLEY AND FAR NORTHEAST WISCONSIN STILL PRODUCING HAIL UP TO PING BALL SIZE. THESE STORMS SHOULD MOVE OFF SHORE BY 630 PM CDT. REFOCUSING ATTENTION ON WESTERN HALF OF THE FORECAST AREA WHERE STRONG UPPER DYNAMICS...ASSOCIATED WITH STRONG DEEP LAYER IN EXCESS OF 50 KNOTS...AND STRENGTHENING LOW-LEVEL SHEAR WHERE BOUNDARY FLOW HAS BACKED SUBSTANTIALLY. STILL MAILY DISCRETE STORMS AT THIS TIME THUS TORNADO THREAT CONTINUES OVER THE SOUTHWEST...CENTRAL AND NORTHWEST PORTION OF THE FORECAST AREA. STORMS WILL SPREAD BACK INTO THE FOX VALLEY BEWTEEN ABOUT 7 AND 730 PM CDT. ESB && .GRB WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREEN BAY WI 1203 PM CDT SUN MAY 22 2011 WIZ005-010>013-018>022-030-031-035>040-045-048>050-073-074-231715- 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- 1203 PM CDT SUN MAY 22 2011 ...SEVERE WEATHER OUTBREAK POSSIBLE THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST WISCONSIN. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT A SIGNIFICANT OUTBREAK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IS POSSIBLE THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. THE PRIMARY RISK IS OF LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. BUT THERE IS ALSO A RISK OF TORNADOES. OVER CENTRAL AND NORTH-CENTRAL WISCONSIN...THE GREATEST RISK WILL OCCUR FROM 200 PM TO 800 PM. OVER THE EAST...THE GREATEST RISK WILL OCCUR FROM 400 PM THROUGH 1100 PM. A STRONG UPPER-LEVEL STORM SYSTEM MOVING TOWARD THE AREA FROM THE WEST IS EXPECTED TO INITIATE SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS OVER SOUTHEAST MINNESOTA AND WESTERN WISCONSIN DURING THE EARLY TO MIDDLE AFTERNOON HOURS. THE STORMS ARE EXPECTED TO ORGANIZE INTO A LARGE COMPLEX OF SEVERE STORMS AND MOVE EAST INTO THE AREA. THE COMPLEX IS LIKELY TO PRODUCE DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL. BUT TORNADOES WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE...ESPECIALLY IF A FEW DISCRETE STORMS ARE ABLE TO DEVELOP AND REACH THE AREA BEFORE ORGANIZING INTO THE COMPLEX. AS A RESULT OF THE SEVERE WEATHER POTENTIAL...THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS POSTED A MODERATE RISK FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS SOUTH AND WEST OF A LINE FROM WAUSAU TO OSHKOSH...AND A SLIGHT RISK ACROSS THE REMAINDER OF THE AREA. AREAS OF DENSE FOG WILL PERSIST NEAR LAKE MICHIGAN TODAY AND POSSIBLY INTO THIS EVENING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED MONDAY...BUT THOSE STORMS ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BE SEVERE. FROST IS POSSIBLE AWAY FROM LAKE MICHIGAN TUESDAY NIGHT...WEDNESDAY NIGHT...AND THURSDAY NIGHT. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL BE NEEDED THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING. LMZ521-522-541>543-231715- THE BAY OF GREEN BAY SOUTH OF A LINE FROM CEDAR RIVER MI TO ROCK ISLAND PASSAGE-LAKE MICHIGAN FROM WASHINGTON ISLAND TO SHEBOYGAN- 1203 PM CDT SUN MAY 22 2011 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHWEST LAKE MICHIGAN AND THE WATERS OF GREEN BAY. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT THUNDERSTORMS...SOME SEVERE...ARE POSSIBLE LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING. AREAS OF DENSE FOG ARE LIKELY TO PERSIST THROUGH THE EVENING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED MONDAY...BUT THOSE STORMS ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BE SEVERE. CONDITIONS HAZARDOUS TO SMALL CRAFT ARE POSSIBLE MONDAY. EB
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREEN BAY WI
635 PM CDT SUN MAY 22 2011
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0635 PM HAIL PLOVER 44.45N 89.53W
05/22/2011 E1.25 INCH PORTAGE WI TRAINED SPOTTER
&&
TOMHPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREEN BAY WI
636 PM CDT SUN MAY 22 2011
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0636 PM HAIL PLOVER 44.45N 89.53W
05/22/2011 M1.00 INCH PORTAGE WI TRAINED SPOTTER
COVERING THE GROUND.
&&
SACPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREEN BAY WI
639 PM CDT SUN MAY 22 2011
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0638 PM TORNADO 4 S PLOVER 44.39N 89.53W
05/22/2011 PORTAGE WI TRAINED SPOTTER
TORNADO ON THE GROUND
&&
TOMHPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREEN BAY WI
642 PM CDT SUN MAY 22 2011
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0630 PM HAIL KELLNER 44.34N 89.71W
05/22/2011 M1.75 INCH PORTAGE WI TRAINED SPOTTER
&&
BERSCHPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREEN BAY WI
654 PM CDT SUN MAY 22 2011
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0635 PM HAIL PLOVER 44.45N 89.53W
05/22/2011 E2.00 INCH PORTAGE WI CO-OP OBSERVER
&&
TERIEPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREEN BAY WI
704 PM CDT SUN MAY 22 2011
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0635 PM HAIL ARNOTT 44.45N 89.43W
05/22/2011 E1.50 INCH PORTAGE WI TRAINED SPOTTER
&&
TERIEThe Green Bay radar (KGRB), 63 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:03 UTC.
1 waterspout. Local standard time, as filed.
A waterspout was observed over Lake Michigan, about 5 miles northeast of Algoma.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Lake Michigan in 2011Every state in 2011This day in weather history
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: 314116.