Blizzard in Wisconsin
Every blizzard event the National Weather Service has filed in Wisconsin, year by year, with the most significant episodes. Sustained winds or frequent gusts of 35 mph or more with falling or blowing snow that cuts visibility below a quarter mile for three hours or longer.
The most significant on the map
The most significant blizzard episodes in Wisconsin.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The record
- Events
- 302
- Deaths
- 7
- Injuries
- 17
- Damage
- $594,000
Every year
The most significant
Ranked by deaths, injuries, damage and size together.
- Blizzard and Winter Storm in Wisconsin, February 23 to 24, 2019A fierce, late-winter storm produced heavy snow, freezing rain, and high winds across much of central and northern Wisconsin on February 23-24 as an area of low pressure rapidly deepened across the Great Lakes.
- Blizzard in Wisconsin, February 1 to 2, 2011A powerful low pressure center, passing south of Wisconsin, produced blizzard conditions across much of southern Wisconsin from the evening hours of Tuesday, February 1st into the early morning of Wednesday, February 2nd.
- Blizzard and Winter Storm in Wisconsin, February 1 to 2, 2015Intensifying low pressure tracked from the central Great Plains to southeast Indiana the night of January 31st into the evening of February 1st. This resulted in a long duration winter storm and blizzard over portions of southern WI.
- Blizzard in Wisconsin, December 11 to 12, 2010An upper-level trough deepened over the central Plains, developing a deep area of surface low pressure that tracked from Iowa across Illinois. The system produced heavy snow across all of Wisconsin, with portions of the south initially seeing rain, limiting snow amounts there.
- Blizzard and Winter Storm in Wisconsin, December 11 to 13, 2010A strong winter storm produced heavy snow and blizzard conditions across parts of Wisconsin and Minnesota on December 11-12, 2010. A widespread snowfall of 8 to 14 inches along with frequent wind gusts over 40 mph affected much of northeast and central Wisconsin.
- Blizzard and Winter Storm in Wisconsin, December 10 to 12, 2010A powerful low pressure system tracked across the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes region during the evening hours of December 10th into the morning hours of December 12th.
- Blizzard in Wisconsin, February 1 to 2, 2011A powerful low pressure center, passing south of Wisconsin, produced blizzard conditions across much of southern Wisconsin from the evening hours of Tuesday, February 1st into the early morning of Wednesday, February 2nd.
- Blizzard in Wisconsin, January 26 to 27, 1996Strong winds and heavy snow reduced the visibility to less than one quarter mile at times. Many roads reported impassable in Eau Claire and Dunn counties. Eau Claire received 9 inches of snow, Menomonie 8 inches and Barron 6 inches.
- Blizzard in Wisconsin, December 1, 2006The first blizzard since 1999 affected locations within about 5 miles of the Lake Michigan shoreline in the counties of Milwaukee, Racine, and Kenosha.
- Blizzard and Winter Storm in Wisconsin, April 13 to 16, 2018A low pressure system that moved from the Plains, across Illinois, to the Ohio Valley brought two periods of heavy precipitation and strong northeast winds to the area.
- Blizzard and Winter Storm in Wisconsin, February 23 to 24, 2019A strong winter storm dumped as much as 14 inches of snow across parts of western Wisconsin from February 23rd into the 24th. As the snow was winding down, the winds increased with sustained winds of 25 to 35 mph and gusts of 45 to 55 mph.
- Blizzard and Winter Storm in Wisconsin, March 14 to 16, 2026A historic, record-setting winter storm impacted northeast Wisconsin from Saturday evening (3/14), through Monday evening (3/16).
- Blizzard in Wisconsin, January 2, 1999A snarling, crippling winter storm/blizzard all but paralyzed southcentral and southeast Wisconsin, depositing 10 to 20.5 inches of snow, generating wind gusts to 45 to 63 mph, whipping up huge drifts of 4 to 8 feet in height, and causing numerous chain-reaction collisions of…
- Blizzard in Wisconsin, February 24 to 25, 2007This blizzard was round #2 of a 1-2 Winter Storm/Blizzard, with about a 12 hour separation between rounds.
- Blizzard in Wisconsin, February 24 to 25, 2007A blizzard event affected the counties of Milwaukee, Rock, and Walworth overnight from the 24th into the 25th. Convective bands of heavy snow, with hourly snowfall rates of 1 to 2 inches moved through the area as east winds gusted to 30 to 38 knots (35 to 44 mph).
- Blizzard and Winter Storm in Wisconsin, January 2 to 3, 1999An intense area of low pressure produced strong winds and heavy snow across northeast Wisconsin. Blizzard conditions were common in east central Wisconsin where wind gusts over 40 mph and 8 to 15 inches of snow produced whiteout conditions.
- Blizzard and Winter Storm in Wisconsin, February 16, 2006A major winter storm intensified across the Midwest Thursday morning and moved northeast across northeast Illinois into southern Lower Michigan by Thursday evening. Heavy snow began to fall across central, east central and northeast Wisconsin Thursday morning.
- Blizzard and Winter Storm in Wisconsin, December 8 to 9, 2009One of the biggest winter storms in years pounded much of Wisconsin, including the northeast part of the state. Snow developed as low pressure rapidly deepened as it moved across Illinois into Lake Michigan.
- Blizzard and Winter Storm in Wisconsin, December 28 to 29, 2015The first major winter storm of the 2015-2016 winter season for the region produced a swath of 8 to 14 inches of snow across parts of central and northeast Wisconsin as a low pressure system moved from Arkansas to southern Lake Michigan.
- Blizzard in Wisconsin, January 29, 1996A powerful arctic cold front roared across central and northeast Wisconsin, creating ground blizzard conditions. Strong west winds gusting as high as 35 to 45 mph whipped a fresh, powdery snowfall into a fury, resulting in zero visibilities and icy roads.
- Blizzard and Winter Storm in Wisconsin, December 8 to 9, 2009A large winter storm, producing heavy snow and strong winds, affected southwest and central Wisconsin from December 8 through December 9.
- Blizzard in Wisconsin, January 29, 1996A rare, widespread ground blizzard tormented Southcentral and Southeast Wisconsin with the worst whiteout conditions ever experienced by some residents and travlers.
- Blizzard and Winter Storm in Wisconsin, January 26 to 27, 2014A strong arctic cold front moved through southern Wisconsin from the late afternoon through the tonight period. West to northwest winds gusted to 35-50 mph with blizzard conditions mainly south and west of Madison.
- Blizzard in Wisconsin, March 15 to 16, 2026A band of moderate to heavy snow moved across southern Wisconsin on the back side of a strong low pressure system moving into Lower Michigan, bringing a wide range of 4 to 16 inches of snow accumulation to southern Wisconsin.
- Blizzard in Wisconsin, February 24 to 25, 2007As the winter storm moved across Iowa toward the lower Great Lakes, blizzard conditions affected southwest Wisconsin Saturday night, February 24, and lasted into Sunday morning, February 25.
More
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.