Storm Record · Columbia, Dane, Dodge, Jefferson, Sauk, Waukesha Counties
July 28, 2021: Tornadoes across six counties
70
Strongest gust
14
Tornadoes
20
NWS reports
What the National Weather Service recorded
A round of severe storms tracked into southwest Wisconsin during the early morning hours on July 28th. Followed by another round of stronger, more widespread thunderstorms that begin to dive south across central Wisconsin late in the evening on July 28th through the early morning hours on July 29th.
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database · episode 159860
Every report, in the Weather Service's words
Where It Hit
| Location | County | Hazard | Size | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fox Lake (.56 WSW) | Dodge | Wind | 70 mph wind | Multiple trees down near Fox Lake and Clyman. Displaced boat hoist on the east side of Elmwood Island. |
| Mukwonago (.69 S) | Waukesha | Wind | 70 mph wind | Tree limbs down, transformer exploded behind Village of Mukwonago Police Department. |
| Lone Rock Airport | Sauk | Wind | 68 mph wind | Lone Rock ASOS reported 59 kt gust. |
| Pewaukee (1.22 NE) | Waukesha | Wind | 64 mph wind | Multiple trees and large branched down. |
| Wisconsin Dells | Columbia | Wind | 64 mph wind | |
| Brooklyn (1.01 E) | Dane | Wind | 60 mph wind | Several trees down and numerous branches. |
| Pipersville (2.23 SSW) | Jefferson | Tornado | EF1 | This was 1 of 17 tornadoes to occur in Wisconsin on the night of July 28th into the early morning hours of July 29th. This was the 13th overall tornado for the event. A line of storms developed in northern Wisconsin and pushed south into southern Wisconsin in the overnight hours of the 28th into the 29th of July with mainly brief tornadoes and damaging winds occurring. ||This tornado began a few country blocks east of tornado #12 and started near County Highway P near Aliceton Dr and then tracked to the south, damaging a number of structures along County Rd E, crossing I-94 before going through Concord. The tornado then went through rural areas before ending east of Willow Glen Rd. |
| Utica (3.15 W) | Waukesha | Tornado | EF1 | This was 1 of 17 tornadoes to occur in Wisconsin on the night of July 28th into the early morning hours of July 29th. This was the 14th overall tornado for the event. A line of storms developed in northern Wisconsin and pushed south into southern Wisconsin in the overnight hours of the 28th into the 29th of July with mainly brief tornadoes and damaging winds occurring. ||This tornado began in eastern Jefferson County and entered Waukesha County just north of where the Bark River crosses the county line. The tornado tracked to the southeast and ended up crossing County Rd Z and ending by the north end of School Section Lake. The main tree damage was noted at St. Bruno Cemetery. |
| Utica (1.21 NNW) | Waukesha | Tornado | EF1 | This was 1 of 17 tornadoes to occur in Wisconsin on the night of July 28th into the early morning hours of July 29th. This was the 15th overall tornado for the event. A line of storms developed in northern Wisconsin and pushed south into southern Wisconsin in the overnight hours of the 28th into the 29th of July with mainly brief tornadoes and damaging winds occurring. ||This tornado began to the north of Utica or northwest of Dousman and ended near Utica. The main damage was to a dock in a man made lake north of Utica. |
| Cross Plains (.45 S) | Dane | Tornado | EF1 | This was 1 of 17 tornadoes to occur in Wisconsin on the night of July 28th into the early morning hours of July 29th. This was the 7th overall tornado for the event.|A line of storms developed in northern Wisconsin and pushed south into southern Wisconsin in the overnight hours of the 28th into the 29th of July with mainly brief tornadoes and damaging winds occurring. ||This tornado began to the east of Cross Plains, tracked south across Highway 14 toward Cross Plains State Park where it ended up on south side of the park. The main tree damage was between Highway 14 and Stagecoach Rd southeast of Cross Plains near Black Earth Creek. |
| Bethesda (1.45 WNW) | Waukesha | Tornado | EF1 | This was 1 of 17 tornadoes to occur in Wisconsin on the night of July 28th into the early morning hours of July 29th. This was the 17th overall tornado for the event. A line of storms developed in northern Wisconsin and pushed south into southern Wisconsin in the overnight hours of the 28th into the 29th of July with mainly brief tornadoes and damaging winds occurring. ||This tornado began in a subdivision near County Rd D and Townline Rd. It crossed Townline Rd where it snapped several mature pine trees 10-15 feet above the ground and uprooted a very large maple tree. The tornado progressed southeast with additional minor tree damage and dissipated near Hwy 59. |
| Dekorra (2.08 NNW) | Columbia | Tornado | EF1 | This was 1 of 17 tornadoes to occur in Wisconsin on the night of July 28th into the early morning hours of July 29th. This was the 5th overall tornado for the event.|A line of storms developed in northern Wisconsin and pushed south into southern Wisconsin in the overnight hours of the 28th into the 29th of July with mainly brief tornadoes and damaging winds occurring.||This tornado began in the Baraboo River Waterfowl Production Area just north of the I-94/I-39 split south of Portage. The tornado crossed the interstate and hit the I-39 Supply facility where 84 trailers were damaged or destroyed. The tornado continued to the southeast where it caused extensive tree damage through mainly rural areas. The last area of noted damage was to a large metal farming shed north of Thunderbird Drive. |
| Sullivan (1.69 E) | Jefferson | Tornado | EF1 | This was 1 of 17 tornadoes to occur in Wisconsin on the night of July 28th into the early morning hours of July 29th. This was the 14th overall tornado for the event. A line of storms developed in northern Wisconsin and pushed south into southern Wisconsin in the overnight hours of the 28th into the 29th of July with mainly brief tornadoes and damaging winds occurring. ||This tornado began near Indian Point Rd to the southwest of Golden Lake in the far eastern part of Jefferson county. It crossed the Jefferson/Waukesha County line to the NW of the Bark River. Damage noted in this area by Indian Point Rd was to trees. |
| Lapham Peak State Park (2.2 E) | Waukesha | Tornado | EF0 | This was 1 of 17 tornadoes to occur in Wisconsin on the night of July 28th into the early morning hours of July 29th. This was the 16th overall tornado for the event. A line of storms developed in northern Wisconsin and pushed south into southern Wisconsin in the overnight hours of the 28th into the 29th of July with mainly brief tornadoes and damaging winds occurring. ||This tornado mainly went through rural areas east of Wales and west of Waukesha. Mainly had minor tree damage noted along this path which ran from north of Hwy 18 across it down toward County Rd DT to the west of Retzer Nature Center. |
| Fall River (1.68 S) | Columbia | Tornado | EF0 | This was 1 of 17 tornadoes to occur in Wisconsin on the night of July 28th into the early morning hours of July 29th. This was the 8th overall tornado for the event.|A line of storms developed in northern Wisconsin and pushed south into southern Wisconsin in the overnight hours of the 28th into the 29th of July with mainly brief tornadoes and damaging winds occurring. ||This tornado began and ended on one property northwest of Columbus, just west of Highway 16 and south of Hall Rd. This brief tornado did tree and crop damage. |
| Black Earth (3.84 NE) | Dane | Tornado | EF0 | This was 1 of 17 tornadoes to occur in Wisconsin on the night of July 28th into the early morning hours of July 29th. This was the 6th overall tornado for the event.|A line of storms developed in northern Wisconsin and pushed south into southern Wisconsin in the overnight hours of the 28th into the 29th of July with mainly brief tornadoes and damaging winds occurring. This tornado began northeast of Black Earth in the Marsh Valley and tracked to the south through the center of Cross Plains. There wasn't much in the way of structural damage from this tornado, rather consistent tree damage from the start point through to the south side of Cross Plains. |
| Pine Bluff (3.21 E) | Dane | Tornado | EF1 | This was 1 of 17 tornadoes to occur in Wisconsin on the night of July 28th into the early morning hours of July 29th. This was the 9th overall tornado for the event. A line of storms developed in northern Wisconsin and pushed south into southern Wisconsin in the overnight hours of the 28th into the 29th of July with mainly brief tornadoes and damaging winds occurring. ||This tornado began near the Town of Middleton along Old Sauk Rd and went through some subdivisions before ending south of Valley View Rd. |
| Riley (3.76 ENE) | Dane | Tornado | EF0 | This was 1 of 17 tornadoes to occur in Wisconsin on the night of July 28th into the early morning hours of July 29th. This was the 10th overall tornado for the event.|A line of storms developed in northern Wisconsin and pushed south into southern Wisconsin in the overnight hours of the 28th into the 29th of July with mainly brief tornadoes and damaging winds occurring. ||This tornado began in the Town of Middleton near Old Sauk Rd and went south, through Mineral Point Rd and ended south of Valley View Rd and west of Meadow Rd. Tree damage was noted along the path, as well as some loss of roofing materials in the newer subdivision along Mineral Point Rd. |
| Grellton (3.31 NNW) | Jefferson | Tornado | EF0 | This was 1 of 17 tornadoes to occur in Wisconsin on the night of July 28th into the early morning hours of July 29th. This was the 11th overall tornado for the event. A line of storms developed in northern Wisconsin and pushed south into southern Wisconsin in the overnight hours of the 28th into the 29th of July with mainly brief tornadoes and damaging winds occurring.| |This tornado began to the southwest of Watertown and mainly moved through rural areas to the south of the city. Some of the main damage was to a house/farm near Hilltop Rd and Horseshoe Rd, otherwise it was mainly tree and crop damage. The path cross Highway 26 near Ebenezer Rd and ended near Cattail Dr. |
| Grellton (2.06 ESE) | Jefferson | Tornado | EF0 | This was 1 of 17 tornadoes to occur in Wisconsin on the night of July 28th into the early morning hours of July 29th. This was the 12th overall tornado for the event. A line of storms developed in northern Wisconsin and pushed south into southern Wisconsin in the overnight hours of the 28th into the 29th of July with mainly brief tornadoes and damaging winds occurring. ||This tornado began near Highway 26 north of I-94 and eventually crossed I-94 near Saucer Dr. Mainly tree damage along this path. |
Service areas this storm touched