Tornadoes · United States · Wisconsin · 2017

EF0 tornado, Morrison, Wisconsin, June 14, 2017

This EF0 tornado ran 1.2 miles across Brown County on June 14, 2017, touching down at 3:53 PM CDT and reaching 50 yards wide. It killed nobody.

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The Enhanced Fujita scale rates the damage rather than measuring the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

  1. EF065 to 85 mphthis tornado

    Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.

  2. EF186 to 110 mph

    Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.

  3. EF2111 to 135 mph

    Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.

  4. EF3136 to 165 mph

    Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.

  5. EF4166 to 200 mph

    Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.

  6. EF5over 200 mph

    Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.

  7. Unrated

    The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.

The record

Rating
EF0
Date
June 14, 2017
Touchdown
3:53 PM CDT (20:53 UTC)
Lifted
3:55 PM CDT (20:55 UTC)
On the ground
2 minutes
Path length
1.2 miles (1.9 km)
Path width
50 yards (46 m)
Deaths
0
Injuries
0
County
Brown County
Touchdown point
44.290, -88.000
Lift-off point
44.300, -87.980
Record number
1706141453-01

What the Weather Service recorded

A line of thunderstorms, known as a quasi-linear convective system (QLCS), formed ahead of a cold front and produced widespread winds of 50 to 70 mph and tornadoes as it passed through central and east-central Wisconsin. Ten tornadoes formed during the afternoon. One was associated with an isolated storm ahead of the main line. Five of the tornadoes were rated EF0 and the other five were EF1. ||This was the biggest outbreak of tornadoes in the National Weather Service Green Bay service area of northeast and north-central Wisconsin, tying the April 10, 2011, event.

A weak tornado caused minor tree damage (DI 27, DOD 1 and 2).

From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.

The warnings

8 minutes of warning. NWS GRB issued a tornado warning for this county at 20:45 UTC, 8 minutes before the tornado touched down, in force until 21:19 UTC.

The county was under a severe thunderstorm watch, issued at 17:40 UTC and running to 22:21 UTC.

Issued (UTC)ExpiredProductOffice
17:40 UTC22:21 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WatchGRB
20:25 UTC21:15 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRB
20:34 UTC23:30 UTCFlood AdvisoryGRB
20:45 UTC21:19 UTCTornado WarningGRB
21:00 UTC21:30 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRB

Every warning and watch covering the touchdown point that day, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service products. Lead time is measured from the issue of the warning in force to the touchdown time in the database, both of which were recorded to the minute by different people.

The forecast that day

The Storm Prediction Center had this point in a Slight Risk, with a 0.02 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 20:06 UTC.

SPC's Day 1 convective outlook as it stood when the tornado began, read at the touchdown point. The same archive is on the radar archive.

The air that afternoon

The radiosonde launches on either side of the tornado, from the nearest station that was launching then, drawn and analyzed the way Storm Lab does: the same diagram, the same parcel and shear definitions SPC's mesoanalysis uses.

Green Bay/Straub, WI (KGRB), 12:00Z

8.9 hours before the tornado, 22 km from the path. June 14, 2017.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Green Bay/Straub, WI at 12:00Z on 2017-06-14Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 303 joules per kilogram, CIN -184, lifted condensation level 814 meters above ground. Wind barbs in knots down the right edge.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed. The warm shading is its CAPE, the cool shading the inhibition it has to break through.
HodographHodograph, Green Bay/Straub, WI at 12:00Z on 2017-06-14The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers as a curve, rings every 10 meters per second labeled in knots. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 18 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 18 knots.193958Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km. RM and LM are the right and left moving storms Bunkers' method gives; the shaded area is the 0 to 1 km storm-relative helicity.
Mixed-layer CAPE
303 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-184 J/kg
Surface CAPE
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
814 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
18 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
30 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
18 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
89 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
1.4
0-3 km lapse rate
4.3 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

Green Bay/Straub, WI (KGRB), 00:00Z

3.1 hours after it, 22 km from the path. June 15, 2017.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Green Bay/Straub, WI at 00:00Z on 2017-06-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 6 joules per kilogram, CIN -192, lifted condensation level 987 meters above ground. Wind barbs in knots down the right edge.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed. The warm shading is its CAPE, the cool shading the inhibition it has to break through.
HodographHodograph, Green Bay/Straub, WI at 00:00Z on 2017-06-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers as a curve, rings every 10 meters per second labeled in knots. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -19 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 32 knots.193958Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km. RM and LM are the right and left moving storms Bunkers' method gives; the shaded area is the 0 to 1 km storm-relative helicity.
Mixed-layer CAPE
6 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-192 J/kg
Surface CAPE
106 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
987 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
32 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
14 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-19 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
127 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0
0-3 km lapse rate
5.2 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The radar

The Green Bay radar (KGRB), 25 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 20:52 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment, over the track

Reflectivity and velocity, decoded from the Level II archive in the browser. Volumes take a few seconds to open the first time.

What was reported nearby

Local storm reports within 60 km of the path, in the three hours either side.

Time (UTC)ReportWhereCountyRemark
20:13 UTCTSTM WND DMG3 Sw OshkoshWinnebago, WIA FEW TREES DOWN.
20:15 UTCTSTM WND DMGButte Des MortsWinnebago, WISMALL TREE LIMBS DOWN. 50 MPH GUSTS
20:17 UTCTORNADO5 N AppletonOutagamie, WIBRIEF, WEAK TORNADO NEAR MACKVILLE. TREE LIMBS AND TWIGS DOWN.
20:25 UTCTSTM WND DMGMenashaWinnebago, WIMANY TREES DOWN.
20:30 UTCTSTM WND DMGAppletonOutagamie, WIESTIMATED 55 TO 60 MPH WINDS. LARGE TREES DOWN ON SOUTH AND EAST SIDE OF CITY.
20:30 UTCTSTM WND DMGShioctonOutagamie, WITREES AND POWER LINES DOWN.
20:30 UTCTSTM WND GST 603 N ShioctonOutagamie, WI
20:30 UTCTORNADO1 Se AppletonOutagamie, WIEF1 TORNADO BEGAN NEAR FOX CROSSING IN NE WINNEBAGO COUNTY AND MOVED INTO OUTAGAMIE COUNTY ACROSS SOUTHEAST APPLETON AND INTO THE KIMBERLY AREA. ON THE GROUND FOR ABOUT 6 MILES.
20:30 UTCTSTM WND DMG5 Nne Mount CalvaryFond Du Lac, WIROOF TORN OFF MILKING PARLOR. TIME ESTIMATED FROM RADAR.
20:32 UTCTSTM WND GST 652 S AppletonCalumet, WI
20:32 UTCTSTM WND GST 66SherwoodCalumet, WITIME OF EVENT IS AN ESTIMATE.
20:33 UTCTORNADOShioctonOutagamie, WILARGE TREES DOWN ON WIRES
20:35 UTCTSTM WND GST 65AppletonOutagamie, WILARGE TREES DOWN AROUND APPLETON. TIME ESTIMATED.
20:43 UTCTORNADO5 Se Navarino WildlifeShawano, WI
20:44 UTCHEAVY RAIN 1.75OshkoshWinnebago, WI
20:47 UTCFUNNEL CLOUDNavarinoShawano, WIROTATING WALL CLOUD
20:51 UTCTORNADO3 Sw PulaskiShawano, WITHIS CORRESPONDS TO TORNADO 7 ON THE NWS DAMAGE SURVEY PNS SUMMARY.
20:52 UTCTSTM WND DMG6 Wsw SobieskiOconto, WINUMEROUS TREES DOWN.
20:52 UTCTORNADO1 S Frazer CornersShawano, WI
20:53 UTCTORNADO2 Sw AngelicaShawano, WITHIS CORRESPONDS TO TORNADO 8 ON THE NWS DAMAGE SURVEY PNS SUMMARY.
20:54 UTCTORNADO1 Nne MorrisonBrown, WIWEAK TORNADO NEAR MORRISON. A FEW TREE BRANCHES DOWN ALONG SHORT PATH.
20:58 UTCTSTM WND DMG2 Ene PlymouthSheboygan, WITRACTOR TRAILER OVERTURNED BY STRONG WINDS.
21:04 UTCTSTM WND DMG4 Ene Green BayBrown, WI4 TO 5 INCH TREE LIMBS BROKEN OFF AND TOSSED 100 TO 150 FEET. REPORT FROM UW-GREEN BAY.
21:05 UTCTSTM WND DMGLittle SuamicoOconto, WINUMEROUS TREES DOWN.
21:09 UTCTSTM WND GST 64PulaskiBrown, WI
21:15 UTCTSTM WND DMGManitowocManitowoc, WISEVERAL TREES DOWN
21:25 UTCHAIL 0.25ManitowocManitowoc, WIALSO STREET FLOODING

From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service local storm reports.

This ground now

The live radar over the trackEvery 2017 tornado in WisconsinEvery tornado in Wisconsin since 1950Warnings in force in Wisconsin nowThe forecast where you are

The other tornadoes of June 14, 2017

10 more were confirmed in the United States that day.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
June 141:30 PM EDTEF0Osceola, FL0.010
June 141:47 PM CDTEF0Shawano, WI0.125
June 142:49 PM CDTEF1Waushara, WI2.8100$100,000
June 143:28 PM CDTEF1Outagamie, WI8.0125$255,000
June 143:30 PM CDTEF0Outagamie, WI2.850$3,000
June 143:31 PM CDTEF0Outagamie, WI4.050
June 143:40 PM CDTEF1Outagamie, WI4.0100
June 143:45 PM CDTEF1Shawano, WI5.175
June 143:51 PM CDTEF1Shawano, WI5.8150$75,000
June 143:53 PM CDTEF0Shawano, WI3.050$25,000

What this means

Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.

Sources

NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.