With more than two weeks left in August, Wisconsin has already had its second-highest number of tornadoes on record in a single year.
Wisconsin has had 46 tornadoes so far in 2026, matching the state’s total for all of 2010. The only year since 1950 with more was 2005, when the state recorded 62 tornadoes, according to the National Weather Service. Wisconsin averages 23 tornadoes annually, but this year, the state had at least that many during one week in April.
Most recently, an EF-3 tornado hit the Fox Cities on July 27, destroying homes and businesses while knocking down scores of trees and powerlines. It stayed on the ground for 26 minutes, cutting a 12.1-mile path through the Fox Cities, with winds between 136 and 155 mph.
The July 27 tornado was also the widest tornado on record in Wisconsin, peaking at about 1,800 yards wide, according to damage assessment data. National Weather Service records show the state’s previous record for widest tornado was 1,760 yards on May 6, 1959, in Waupaca County.
Peak tornado season in Wisconsin is usually between April and September, but tornadoes can happen at any time of year under the right conditions. Extreme weather events also occur more often in El Niño years, which North America will be in the throes of this fall.
What years had the most tornadoes in Wisconsin?
These are the five years with the most tornado activity in Wisconsin since 1950, according to the National Weather Service.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin matches second-most tornadoes on record as storm season rolls on
Reporting by Caden Perry, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Caden Perry, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | USA TODAY Network
