A tornado ripped across a part of southeastern Wisconsin on Thursday during a powerful thunderstorm—the first time a twister has touched down in the state in February.
The National Weather Service (NWS) station in Milwaukee confirmed that the tornado was on the ground to the west of Edgerton—a city 24 miles to the southeast of Madison—at 6 p.m. CT (7 p.m. ET), and moved in a northeasterly direction towards Milwaukee. "This is a very dangerous storm; seek immediate safe shelter if in its path!" the NWS said at the time.
Wisconsin, Iowa and Illinois, braced for what meteorologists called an "unusual" winter storm as warm air and moisture threatened tornadoes in the Midwest.
In a severe weather report issued later, the NWS said that Wisconsin had never seen a tornado in the calendar month in previous years; no tornado warnings had previously been issued for February, according to records dating back to 1986.
On average, the state has 23 tornadoes that occur throughout a calendar year, with many tending to appear in the summer months. The NWS station in Milwaukee said that a "rare, impressive setup for severe weather" took place on Thursday, allowing for the twister to occur.
The NWS had warned of the threat of "isolated severe thunderstorms" from eastern Iowa to parts bordering the southwest of Lake Michigan.
The storm brought hail of up to 1.5 inch in diameter, lightning and rain. Thousands of residents in southeastern Wisconsin were temporarily left without power.
After issuing three tornado warnings along the track of the storm, the NWS said that all had been canceled by 8 p.m. ET, but added that severe weather conditions would continue towards Milwaukee.
"Large hail continues to be the main concern, though spin-ups remain possible," the agency added at the time.
Local news outlets reported that the tornado moved through Jefferson County before dissipating to the west of Fort Atkinson. Residents described electricity poles being snapped, trees being felled and damage to properties.
Damage was also reported in Albany, 21 miles to the southwest of Edgerton, prompting meteorologists to suspect that there may have been more than one tornado.
The strength of the tornado, and whether there was more than one, has yet to be discerned. The NWS station in Milwaukee said it would be surveying the storm damage on Friday and would produce a final assessment once its investigations had been completed.
The daily morning broadsheet Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported, citing officials, that no deaths or injuries had been reported to emergency services due to the damage caused by the storm.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Aleks Phillips is a Newsweek U.S. News Reporter based in London. His focus is on U.S. politics and the environment. ... Read more
To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.
