Freezing drizzle developed along a weak surface trough resulting in a coating of ice on roadways. Numerous slide-offs and accidents occurred especially in northern Milwaukee, southern Ozaukee, southern Washington, and northeast Waukesha counties.
Every event with a place to put it; 4 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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 MKX wrote it up.
Freezing drizzle developed along a weak surface trough resulting in a coating of ice on roadways. Numerous slide-offs and accidents occurred especially in northern Milwaukee, southern Ozaukee, southern Washington, and northeast Waukesha counties.
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 18, 3:15 AM CST, 5 hours 15 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI 315 AM CST THU DEC 18 2014 .TODAY AND TONIGHT...FORECAST CONFIDENCE - MEDIUM. MAIN CONCERN FOR THIS PERIOD IS CLOUD COVER. HIGH PRESSURE RIDGE OVER WRN GRLAKES WILL SUPPRESS ANY PRECIP TO THE SOUTH FROM SHORT WAVE PASSING ACROSS MID-MS VALLEY REGION. NEARLY STATIONARY AREA OF STRATUS OVER NORTHERN AND CENTRAL WI IS BEGINNING TO INCH SLOWLY SWD LAST SEVERAL HOURS. 11-3.9 MICRON IMAGERY SHOWING EDGE OF STRATUS HAS SAGGED INTO NRN WAUKESHA AND JEFFERSON COUNTIES EXTENDING NORTHWEST TOWARD KDLL. WEAK SUBSIDENCE FROM LEFT ENTRANCE REGION OF PASSING UPPER JET MAY HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO STRATUS REMAINING STATIONARY MUCH OF THE NIGHT...HOWEVER THIS SUPPRESSION MOVING OFF TO THE EAST EARLY THIS MRNG. 00Z KGRB SOUNDING SHOWED MOISTURE RELATIVELY THICK AROUND 3K FEET. LINGERING VERY WEAK FORCING FROM 85H CYCLONIC CURVATURE AND LOW LEVEL WINDS TURNING A BIT MORE NORTH TO NORTHWEST TODAY. HENCE EXPECT STRATUS FIELD TO CONTINUE TO SPREAD SOUTH AND ENGULF MOST OF CWA THRU THE MRNG. NOT IMPOSSIBLE A FEW FLURRIES MAY GET SHAKEN OUT OF THE STRATUS DUE TO VERY WEAK LIFT. EXPECT ONLY SLOW CLEARING LATER TONIGHT INTO FRI MRNG. .FRIDAY - CONFIDENCE...MEDIUM QUIET WEATHER CONTINUES AS HIGH PRESSURE DOMINATES. VERY LITTLE STIRRING IN THE COLUMN. LOW LEVEL RH PROGS OFFER HOPE AT A BIT OF SUNSHINE WHILE THE NAM SHOWS STRONG INVERSION AROUND 900 MILLIBARS. SOME DECREASE IN 925-850 RH NOTED DURING THE DAY SO WILL HAVE SOME CLOUDS IN THE GRIDS BUT HOPE FOR A BIT MORE SUNSHINE THAN WHAT THE NAM MOS IS SUGGESTING. .SATURDAY - CONFIDENCE...MEDIUM MODELS CONTINUE TO SHOW A 500 MILLIBAR SHORTWAVE MOVING FROM IOWA INTO NORTHERN INDIANA. NAM SOUNDING SHOWS COLUMN FAIRLY MOIST BLO 800 MILLIBARS WITH NO SATURATION NOTED IN THE FAVORED ICE GROWTH REGION. MEANWHILE GFS SHOWS SOME MOISTENING BETWEEN 700 AND 800 MILLIBARS. WITH WEAK WAA REGIME SETTING UP WAS TEMPTED TO ADD SOME FLURRIES OR DRIZZLE. PER COLLAB WITH SURROUNDING OFFICES WILL LEAVE OUT. LOW LEVEL MOISTURE PROGS SHOW THE SYNOPTICALLY FAVORED RETURN OF STRATUS WITHIN THIS WEAK WAA REGIME. .SUNDAY AND SUNDAY NIGHT - CONFIDENCE...MEDIUM ANOTHER SHORTWAVE AFFECTS THE AREA. LOW LEVEL WARM AIR ADVECTION IS ONGOING WITH SUSTAINED SOUTHERLY FLOW. THERMAL PATTERN SUGGESTS LIGHT SNOW AS THE PRECIP TYPE WITH 850 AND 925 TEMPS AOB 0C AND 1000/500 MILLIBAR THICKNESSES 531-537DM. BETTER ICE CRYSTAL GROWTH SATURATION NOTED IN WESTERN CWA PER BUFKIT SOUNDINGS. .MONDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY - CONFIDENCE...LOW UPPER LOW PROGGD TO EVOLVE AND PLOD THROUGH GREAT LAKES THIS PERIOD. MODELS NOW SHOW SECONDARY AND STRONGER LOW DEVELOPMENT ALONG EAST COAST. GFS AND ECMWF ARE IN GOOD AGREEMENT ON THIS 00Z RUN BUT CONSISTENCY HASN/T BEEN ESTABLISHED AS YET SO CONFIDENCE STILL A BIT SHAKY THIS FAR OUT. CERTAINLY PLAUSIBLE THAT THIS IS NOT THE FINAL ANSWER CONSIDERING THIS SOUTHERN AND EASTERN SECONDARY LOW DEVELOPMENT IS IN THE DAY 6/7 TIMEFRAME. HAVING SAID THAT...SHOULD THIS 00Z MODEL CONSENSUS SHOW STAYING POWER WE WOULD BE LOOKING AT A WARMER SCENARIO MONDAY INTO AT LEAST THE FIRST PART OF TUESDAY BEFORE COLDER AIR WRAPS IN AND CHANGES PRECIP TYPE TO ALL LIGHT SNOW FOR LATER TUESDAY INTO WEDNESDAY WITH A POTENTIAL WHITENING OF THE LANDSCAPE. && .AVIATION/12Z TAFS/...EXPECT STRATUS FIELD OVER NORTHERN CWA TO SPREAD SOUTHWARD INTO TAF SITES THIS MRNG WITH MVFR CIGS THEN LIKELY TO CONTINUE INTO TNGT. POSSIBLE A FEW LIGHT FLURRIES MAY GET SHAKEN OUT OF THE CLOUDS BUT NO VSBY RESTRICTION IS EXPECTED. RECENT ASCENT KMKE TAMDAR SOUNDING CONTINUED TO SHOW STRONG ELEVATED INVERSION ABV 3.8K AND 00Z KGRB SOUNDING SHOWED THE MOISTURE WAS RELATIVELY DEEP TO THE NORTH...AROUND 3K FT. && .MKX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WI...NONE. LM...NONE. && TODAY/TONIGHT AND AVIATION/MARINE...MBK FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY...COLLAR
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI 322 AM CST THU DEC 18 2014 WIZ046-047-051-052-056>060-062>072-190930- MARQUETTE-GREEN LAKE-FOND DU LAC-SHEBOYGAN-SAUK-COLUMBIA-DODGE- WASHINGTON-OZAUKEE-IOWA-DANE-JEFFERSON-WAUKESHA-MILWAUKEE- LAFAYETTE-GREEN-ROCK-WALWORTH-RACINE-KENOSHA- 322 AM CST THU DEC 18 2014 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EAST CENTRAL WISCONSIN...SOUTH CENTRAL WISCONSIN AND SOUTHEAST WISCONSIN. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY LOW PRESSURE PASSING THROUGH THE GREAT LAKES MAY BRING PERIODS OF LIGHT SNOW TO SOUTHERN WISCONSIN FROM MONDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY. NO SIGNIFICANT ACCUMULATION IS CURRENTLY ANTICIPATED. HOWEVER THE LIGHT SNOW MAY IMPACT TRAVEL PLANS. KEEP UP WITH THE LATEST FORECAST. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED. LMZ643>646-190930- 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- 322 AM CST THU DEC 18 2014 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF LAKE MICHIGAN. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY SOUTH WINDS WILL APPROACH SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY LEVELS ON MONDAY AHEAD OF APPROACHING LOW PRESSURE. WWW.WEATHER.GOV/MKX MBK
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
4 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.
A coating of ice on roadways from freezing drizzle.
A coating of ice on roadways from freezing drizzle.
A coating of ice on roadways from freezing drizzle.
A coating of ice on roadways from freezing drizzle.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Wisconsin in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in Wisconsin, December 2014
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: 545698, 545699, 545700, 545701.