Drought in Wisconsin, July 1 to 31, 2012

Name: Drought in Wisconsin, July 1 to 31, 2012
Start: 2012-07-01T00:00
End: 2012-07-31T23:59
Location: Wisconsin

July 1 to 31, 2012 · NWS MKX · 18 events in 18 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 18 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: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 18

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.

The extremely dry conditions that began in June continued in July across southern Wisconsin. Many locations did not see any precipitation until several rounds of thunderstorms moved through the region during the middle and end of the month. While these thunderstorm events held monthly precipitation deficits to between 0.10 and 0.20 of an inch below normal, the modest monthly deficits still increased the yearly precipitation deficits to between 3 and 5 inches. In addition to the continued below normal precipitation, there were several periods of extreme heat that increased the damaging effects on already stressed crops. The rain that did fall came too late for much of the corn crop, as it fell after the critical pollination stage.

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 Jun 30, 8:05 PM CST, 3 hours 55 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 30, 8:05 PM CST, 3 hours 55 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI
905 PM CDT SAT JUN 30 2012

.AVIATION/06Z TAFS/...
VFR THROUGH THE TAF FORECAST PERIOD. NO AVIATION CONCERNS EXCEPT
FOR MINOR DENSITY ALTITUDE ISSUES RELATED TO THE HEAT.

&&

.PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 328 PM CDT SAT JUN 30 2012/

SHORT TERM...

TONIGHT AND SUNDAY...FORECAST CONFIDENCE MEDIUM TO HIGH

NOT A WHOLE LOT OF ACTION ALOFT THIS PERIOD AS UPPER LEVEL RIDGING
BUILDS IN. 12Z NAM SEEMS TO DEVELOP MCS IN NEBRASKA OVERNIGHT
TONIGHT...TAKING IT ACROSS IOWA AND ILLINOIS. ASSOCIATED MCV IN THIS
SCENARIO WOULD AFFECT SOUTHWEST WISCONSIN BY LATE SUNDAY MORNING AND
CONTINUE TO MOVE EAST-SOUTHEAST FROM THERE. 12Z GFS DEVELOPS A
SIMILAR FEATURE BUT TAKES IT FARTHER SOUTH. EITHER WAY...PROG
SOUNDINGS ARE UNFAVORABLE FOR CONVECTION WITH DRY AND CAPPED LOW
LEVELS...SO ONLY CLOUDS EXPECTED OUT OF ANY PASSING DISTURBANCE.

MOSTLY CLEAR SKIES TONIGHT EXCEPT FOR THE HIGH CLOUDS DESCRIBED
ABOVE. GFS/NAM MOS LOWS FOR TONIGHT ARE BACKED UP BY THOSE PROVIDED
BY 925MB TEMPS AND MODERATE INVERSION PROFILE...BUT WILL LEAN TOWARD
NAM MOS AS IT SEEMS TO BETTER REFLECT THINKING ON CLOUDS.

SOUTHERLY WINDS SUNDAY SHOULD BRING WARMER AND SOMEWHAT MORE HUMID
CONDITIONS INTO THE CWA...BUT NOT BELIEVING THIS WILL OCCUR TO THE
EXTENT THAT THE GFS DEPICTS.

SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY...AN UPPER RIDGE WILL GRADUALLY BUILD
INTO THE NORTH CENTRAL USA THROUGH THE PERIOD. THUS THE STATIONARY
FRONT THAT EXTENDS WEST TO EAST ACROSS SRN IA AND CENTRAL IL WILL
LIFT NWD AS LOW PRESSURE MOVES ACROSS THE NRN PLAINS SUN NT AND
MONDAY. THERE WILL BE WEAK LOW TO MID LEVEL WARM ADVECTION SUN NT
INTO MONDAY BUT THE NAM DEVELOPS AN ORGANIZED LLJ THAT TRIGGERS
CONVECTION OVER SRN MN SUN NT. THE OTHER MODELS ARE WEAKER WITH
THE 850 MB FLOW BUT MAINTAINS THETAE ADVECTION. IF AN MCS FORMS
IT WOULD LIKELY MOVE SEWD INTO SRN WI LATE SUN NT AND INTO MON AM.
WILL TREND TOWARD THE WEAKER SCENARIO WITH 20-30 POPS FOR SUN NT
AND MON. THE WARM FRONT WILL THEN MOVE NORTH OF THE CWA MONDAY
EVENING WITH SWLY WINDS AND A VERY HOT WARM SECTOR FOR TUE. MONDAY
WILL BE THE DAY OF HIGHER HUMIDITY AS THE BOUNDARY MOVES OVER THE
REGION AND WINDS/MIXING REMAIN WEAK. MORE OF A DRY HEAT WILL THEN
PREVAIL TUE AS BETTER WINDS/MIXING WILL RESULT IN LOWER DEWPOINTS
BUT HIGHER TEMPS. HEAT INDICES RANGE FROM 95 TO 100 OVER SOUTH
CENTRAL WI FOR MONDAY BUT THERE IS THE POTENTIAL FOR LARGE ERRORS
IF A MCS AND CLOUDS AFFECT THE REGION LATE SUN NT INTO MON. HAVE
BETTER CONFIDENCE FOR TUE WITH HEAT INDICES APPROACHING 100 MAINLY
BECAUSE THE AIR TEMPS WILL APPROACH 100 F. HEAT ADVISORIES MAY
EVENTUALLY BE NEEDED.

LONG TERM...TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY...FORECAST CONFIDENCE
MEDIUM

A LARGE AND BROAD UPPER RIDGE WILL DOMINATE MUCH OF THE USA
THROUGH THE WEEK WITH A WSWLY JET STREAM OVER FAR SRN CANADA.
THE TAIL END OF A COUPLE COLD FRONTS WILL BRING ONLY SMALL CHANCES
OF THUNDERSTORMS FOR TUE NT/WED AND FRI NT/SAT. THIS MEANS THE HOT
TEMPS WILL CONTINUE WITH AFTERNOON HEAT INDICES FROM 95 TO 100
WITH THE EXCEPTION OF THE LAKE COUNTIES DUE TO LAKE BREEZES
DEVELOPING AND PUSHING INLAND EACH DAY. HEAT ADVISORIES MAY BE
NEEDED AT TIMES NEXT WEEK.

AVIATION/00Z TAFS/...

QUIET WEATHER IS EXPECTED THROUGH THE DAY SUNDAY. COULD SEE VSBYS IN
A FEW SPOTS BRIEFLY DROP TO MVFR LATE TONIGHT AGAIN UNDER LIGHT
WINDS IF SKIES ARE MOSTLY CLEAR. OTHERWISE...VFR CONDITIONS WILL
PERSIST THROUGH TOMORROW.

&&

.MKX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WI...NONE.
LM...NONE.
&&

UPDATE...DAVIS
TONIGHT/SUNDAY AND AVIATION/MARINE...DDV
SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY...GEHRING

Hazardous weather outlook, Jun 30, 6:12 PM CST, 5 hours 48 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI
712 PM CDT SAT JUN 30 2012

WIZ046-047-051-052-056>060-062>072-010900-
MARQUETTE-GREEN LAKE-FOND DU LAC-SHEBOYGAN-SAUK-COLUMBIA-DODGE-
WASHINGTON-OZAUKEE-IOWA-DANE-JEFFERSON-WAUKESHA-MILWAUKEE-
LAFAYETTE-GREEN-ROCK-WALWORTH-RACINE-KENOSHA-
712 PM CDT SAT JUN 30 2012

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

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT

AN AIR QUALITY ADVISORY HAS BEEN ISSUED BY THE WISCONSIN DEPARTMENT
OF NATURAL RESOURCES FOR MILWAUKEE AND KENOSHA COUNTIES UNTIL 1 AM
SUNDAY DUE HIGH QUANTITIES OF OZONE.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY

HEAT INDEX VALUES WILL RANGE FROM 95 TO 100 FOR MUCH OF THE WEEK
INLAND FROM LAKE MICHIGAN. THE HOTTEST DAY WILL BE TUESDAY WHEN AIR
TEMPERATURES APPROACH 100 INCLUDING LOCATIONS NEAR LAKE MICHIGAN.

A WARM FRONT WILL BRING SMALL CHANCES OF THUNDERSTORMS SUNDAY NIGHT
AND MONDAY. A COUPLE WEAK COLD FRONTS WILL BRING SMALL CHANCES OF
THUNDERSTORMS FOR TUESDAY NIGHT AND WEDNESDAY AND AGAIN FRIDAY NIGHT
AND SATURDAY.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED THIS WEEKEND OR NEXT WEEK.

LMZ643>646-010900-
SHEBOYGAN TO PORT WASHINGTON WI-
PORT WASHINGTON TO NORTH POINT LIGHT WI-
NORTH POINT LIGHT TO WIND POINT WI-
WIND POINT WI TO WINTHROP HARBOR IL-
712 PM CDT SAT JUN 30 2012

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF LAKE MICHIGAN.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY

A WARM FRONT WILL BRING SMALL CHANCES OF THUNDERSTORMS ON MONDAY. A
COUPLE WEAK COLD FRONTS WILL BRING SMALL CHANCES OF THUNDERSTORMS
FOR TUESDAY NIGHT AND WEDNESDAY AND AGAIN FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY.

GEHRING/MEB

WWW.WEATHER.GOV/MKX

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

18 drought. Local standard time, as filed.

Drought, Marquette

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Marquette forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 43.820, -89.399 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Marquette County was raised from Abnormally Dry (D0) on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3) in far southern locations with Severe (D2) over the remainder of the county on July 17th. Late month rains brought only minimal improvement to Severe (D2) for the entire county by July 31st.

Drought, Green Lake

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Green Lake forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 43.800, -89.045 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Green Lake County was raised from Abnormally Dry (D0) on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3) in far southern locations with Severe (D2) over the remainder of the county on July 17th. Late month rains brought only minimal improvement to Severe (D2) for the entire county by July 31st.

Drought, Fond du Lac

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Fond du Lac forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 43.754, -88.488 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Fond Du Lac County was raised from Abnormally Dry (D0) on July 3rd, to Severe (D2), with Moderate (D1)the far northeast corner of the county on July 17th. Late month rains brought no improvement through July 31st.

Drought, Sauk

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Sauk forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 43.427, -89.948 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Sauk County was raised from Abnormally Dry (D0) over the northern 2/3 of the county with Moderate Drought (D1) over the southern 1/3 on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3) with Severe (D2) over the far northwest corner on July 17th. Late month rains brought only minimal improvement to Severe (D2) for the entire county by July 31st.

Drought, Columbia

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Columbia forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 43.467, -89.334 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Columbia County was raised from Moderate Drought (D1) on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3) on July 17th. Late month rains brought only minimal improvement to Severe (D2) for the entire county by July 31st.

Drought, Dodge

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Dodge forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 43.416, -88.707 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Dodge County was raised from Moderate Drought (D1) on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3) on July 17th. Late month rains brought only minimal improvement to Severe (D2) for the entire county by July 31st.

Drought, Washington

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Washington forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 43.369, -88.231 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Washington County was raised from Moderate Drought (D1) on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3) on July 17th. Late month rains brought only minimal improvement to Severe (D2) for the entire county by July 31st.

Drought, Iowa

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Iowa forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 43.001, -90.135 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Iowa County was raised from Moderate (D1) on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3 on July 17th. Late month rains brought minor improvement, lowering the designation to Severe (D2) in the north half while keeping Extreme (D3) elsewhere by July 31st.

Drought, Dane

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Dane forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 43.067, -89.418 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Dane County was raised from Moderate (D1) on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3 on July 17th. Late month rains brought minor improvement, lowering the designation to Severe (D2) in the northern 2/3 while keeping Extreme (D3) elsewhere by July 31st.

Drought, Jefferson

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Jefferson forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 43.021, -88.776 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Jefferson County was raised from Moderate (D1) on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3) on July 17th. Late month rains brought minor improvement, lowering the designation to Severe (D2) in the north half while keeping Extreme (D3) elsewhere by July 31st.

Drought, Waukesha

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Waukesha forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 43.018, -88.304 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Waukesha County was raised from Moderate (D1) on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3) on July 17th. Late month rains brought minor improvement, lowering the designation to Severe (D2) in the north half while keeping Extreme (D3) elsewhere by July 31st.

Drought, Milwaukee

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Milwaukee forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 43.022, -87.929 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Milwaukee County was raised from Moderate (D1) on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3) on July 17th. Late month rains brought minor improvement, lowering the designation to Severe (D2) in the northern 3/4 while keeping Extreme (D3) elsewhere by July 31st.

Drought, Lafayette

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Lafayette forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 42.661, -90.132 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Lafayette County was raised from Moderate (D1) on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3) on July 17th. Late month rains did little to improve the precipitation deficits, keeping the designation at Extreme (D3) county-wide through July 31st.

Drought, Green

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Green forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 42.680, -89.602 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Green County was raised from Moderate (D1) on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3) on July 17th. Late month rains did little to improve the precipitation deficits, keeping the designation at Extreme (D3) county-wide through July 31st.

Drought, Rock

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Rock forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 42.671, -89.072 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Rock County was raised from Moderate (D1) on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3) on July 17th. Late month rains did little to improve the precipitation deficits, keeping the designation at Extreme (D3) county-wide through July 31st.

Drought, Walworth

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Walworth forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 42.669, -88.542 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Walworth County was raised from Moderate (D1) on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3) on July 17th. Late month rains did little to improve the precipitation deficits, keeping the designation at Extreme (D3) county-wide through July 31st.

Drought, Racine

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Racine forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 42.730, -87.812 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Racine County was raised from Moderate (D1) on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3) on July 17th. Late month rains did little to improve the precipitation deficits, keeping the designation at Extreme (D3) county-wide through July 31st.

Drought, Kenosha

When: July 1, 12:00 AM CST to July 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Kenosha forecast zone
Reported by: Drought Monitor
Coordinates: 42.573, -87.840 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The drought designation for Kenosha County was raised from Moderate (D1) on July 3rd, to Extreme (D3) on July 17th. Late month rains did little to improve the precipitation deficits, keeping the designation at Extreme (D3) county-wide through July 31st.

What these are

Drought: A drought reaching severe (D2) or worse on the US Drought Monitor, or with notable impacts.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Wisconsin in 2012 Every state in 2012 This day in weather history Warnings in Wisconsin, July 2012

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: 404740, 404741, 404742, 404745, 405025, 405026, 405027, 405028, 405029, 405030, 405031, 405032, 405033, 405034, 405035, 405036, 405037, 405038.