Tornadoes Over Central Wisconsin and the Fox Valley - June 23, 2004
A deepening low pressure system entered the state in the early evening hours
of June 23, 2004 dragging a cold front with it. Thunderstorms formed into
a bow echo west of the area, then intensified and became tornadic as they moved
farther east along a warm front. Five tornadoes formed over Central
Wisconsin and the Fox Valley during the evening hours. Three of the
tornadoes skipped along the ground for miles. Two touched down only
briefly.
Radar Loop of the Event
An animation of the storms from 6:59 to 9:48 p.m. CDT
(Click to start animation)
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Map of Storm Reports Across the Region
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Pictures of the Storm
(Click images for larger view)
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A view of the supercell storm about the time a tornado was producing damage in extreme southwest Waupaca county. Photographers Tim Bubla and Dean Choate were about 20 miles northwest of the storm at the time this picture was taken (7:54 pm). |
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Mammatus clouds on the back side of the supercell thunderstorm that produced the Portage-Waupaca county tornado. The picture was taken in the town of Saratoga in Wood county by Keith Sommers. |
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Another view of mammatus clouds when the storm was in Waupaca county. This picture was taken in Readfield by Carol Bigalke. |
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Picture of tornado near Kaukauna (Outagamie county), taken around 9 pm. Photo by Jeff Vandeleygraaf. |
Damage Photos from Portage and Waupaca Counties
(Click images for larger view)
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Tornado damage showing a clear path with trees on both sides of the path untouched. This damage was 1.5 miles southwest of Lind Center in Waupaca county. |
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A closer look at the tree damage as trees are snapped in half with debris littering the ground. |
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Hay wagon and semi-trailer overturned by the tornado on Radley Road in Waupaca county. |
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Another hay wagon thrown into a tree with sheet metal wrapped around the top of the tree. |
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Roof blown off a house on Crystal Lake with garage foundation in the foreground. |
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Debris from the garage that was blown off its foundation from the tornado. |
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Sheet metal wrapped around the tree further down Radley Road. |
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Collapsed barn on Radley Road. |
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Portion of Radley Road scoured out by the tornado near Highway 22. |
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Damage in Portage county north of Almond. |
Damage Photos from Outagamie County
(Click images for larger view)
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Sonoco Products/WOW Logistics/Resource One industrial building - most of roof of 200,000 sq. ft. building ripped off. Steel beams bent on southwest side of building. |
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Moasis Truck Stop - several tractor trailers overturned in east side of parking lot. One very heavy, red, steel dumpster overturned. |
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Wisconsin Wireless building - communications tower knocked over and twisted. |
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Wisconsin Wireless building - roof damage. |
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Warm Sensations spa company building and warehouse building to the north - heavily damaged. This area is next to the Kaukauna water tower. |
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M and M Industries building - roof torn off. |
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Orv's Pizza on Highway 55 - 2" by 6" board thrown into building as missile. |
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Corner of Elderberry and Harrison - garage ripped from home. |
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Corner of Van de Hey and Sherry - a lot of tree and home damage in this neighborhood. |
Storm Damage Surveys
...RESULTS OF STORM DAMAGE SURVEY IN PORTAGE AND WAUPACA COUNTIES... A STORM SURVEY TEAM FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE IN GREEN BAY FOUND EVIDENCE OF 3 TORNADOES IN PORTAGE AND WAUPACA COUNTIES. THERE WERE NO REPORTED INJURIES OR FATALITIES WITH ANY OF THESE STORMS. HERE IS SOME INFORMATION ABOUT EACH OF THE CONFIRMED TORNADOES. LOCATION: WHITING (PORTAGE COUNTY) FUJITA RATING: F0 (APPROX 40-50 MPH) WIDTH: 10 YARDS PATH LENGTH: BRIEF TOUCHDOWN TIME: 747 PM CDT DAMAGE DESCRIPTION: ONLY VERY MINOR TREE DAMAGE WAS OBSERVED IN AN INDUSTRIAL PARK JUST NE OF THE INTERSECTION OF HWY 39 AND COUNTY HH. AN EYEWITNESS DURING THE EVENT DID NOT SPECIFICALLY SEE A FUNNEL, BUT OBSERVED WATER BEING SUCKED UP OUT OF A POND NEAR THE LANDS END CORPORATE BUILDING. THE DOORS TO THE OFFICE WERE ALSO SUCKED OPEN AT THE SAME TIME. LOCATION: 3 NNW ALMOND TO 3 NNE ALMOND (PORTAGE COUNTY) FUJITA RATING: F1 (APPROX 80 MPH WINDS) WIDTH: 25 YARDS PATH LENGTH: 1.5 MILES TIME: 746-748 PM CDT DAMAGE DESCRIPTION: APPROXIMATELY $100,000 DAMAGE. HOME AT THE INTERSECTION OF 4TH STREET AND 4TH AVENUE HAD ROOF DAMAGE, SEVERAL TREES DOWN AND A FENCE KNOCKED OVER. ANOTHER RESIDENCE FARTHER TO THE EAST HAD DAMAGE TO SOME OUTBUILDINGS. LOCATION: 3 SE BLAINE (SE PORTAGE COUNTY) TO 1.5 SW LIND CENTER (SW WAUPACA COUNTY) FUJITA RATING: F1-F2 (APPROX 110-120 MPH WINDS) WIDTH: 125 YARDS PATH LENGTH: 10 MILES (NOT CONTINUOUS) TIME: 753-806 PM CDT DAMAGE DESCRIPTION: THE WESTERN EDGE OF DAMAGE PATH WAS NEAR 16TH ROAD IN SE PORTAGE COUNTY, WHERE TREES WERE KNOCKED DOWN AND AN IRRIGATION SYSTEM WAS TOPPLED. THE TORNADO TRACKED EAST INTO SW WAUPACA COUNTY, MOVED JUST SOUTH OF THE INTERSECTION OF DAYTON AND SUHS ROADS, CROSSED HWY 22 AND TORE A PATH RIGHT ALONG RADLEY ROAD TO JUST EAST OF HWY K. THE TORNADO CONTINUED AN INTERMITTENT PATH FARTHER EAST, THEN DISSIPATED SOUTH OF LIND CENTER. THE WORST DAMAGE OCCURRED ALONG RADLEY ROAD, WHERE ASPHALT WAS SCOURED OFF THE ROAD, A BARN DEMOLISHED, A SHEET METAL OUTBUILDING DAMAGED, 3 SHEEP KILLED, A ROOF TORN OFF OF A HOME AND GARAGE DEMOLISHED, A SEMI TRAILER MOVED ABOUT 50 FEET AND TURNED ON ITS SIDE AND TWO HAY WAGONS BLOWN UP AGAINST TREES. THE DAMAGE PATH ENDED APPROXIMATELY 1.5 MILES SW OF LIND CENTER, WHERE NUMEROUS TREES WERE SNAPPED OFF OR UPROOTED ON A SMALL HILL. DEBRIS FROM THIS STORM WAS DROPPED AS FAR EAST AS THE FREMONT AREA.
...RESULTS OF STORM DAMAGE SURVEY IN OUTAGAMIE AND BROWN COUNTIES... A STORM SURVEY TEAM FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE IN GREEN BAY FOUND EVIDENCE OF ONE TORNADO IN OUTAGAMIE COUNTY AND A WEAK TORNADO IN BROWN COUNTY. THERE WERE NO REPORTED INJURIES OR FATALITIES WITH ANY OF THE STORMS IN EITHER COUNTY. HERE IS SOME INFORMATION FROM THE STORM SURVEY. OUTAGAMIE COUNTY ONE TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN IN AT LEAST FOUR LOCATIONS ALONG A WEST TO EAST PATH FROM THE INTERSECTION OF HIGHWAYS 41 AND N IN LITTLE CHUTE TO KAUKAUNA. THE DAMAGE VARIED IN INTENSITY FROM F0 (40-72 MPH WINDS) TO F1 (73-112 MPH WINDS). THE DAMAGE PATH OCCURRED OVER A LENGTH OF ABOUT 3.5 MILES AND A WIDTH VARYING FROM ABOUT 25 TO 100 YARDS. THE DAMAGE INCLUDED PARTIAL TO SUBSTANTIAL PORTIONS OF ROOFS BLOWN OFF OF SOME RESIDENTIAL AND SEVERAL COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS. SOME SHEDS AND AN OLD BARN WERE DESTROYED. THERE WAS EVIDENCE OF MUCH DEBRIS HURLED AT BUILDINGS AND VEHICLES IN THE PATH OF THE TORNADO. A 2 X 6 BOARD WAS EVEN OBSERVED TO HAVE BEEN HURLED THROUGH THE EXTERIOR WALL OF A METAL BUILDING. SOME TRUCK TRAILERS WERE OBSERVED TO HAVE BEEN FLIPPED EITHER ON THEIR SIDES OR OVER COMPLETELY...EVEN FLIPPED AND LIFTED ONTO OTHER VEHICLES IN ONE INSTANCE. SOME LARGE TREES WERE ALSO EITHER TOPPED OR LARGELY UPROOTED AND TWISTED. BROWN COUNTY ISOLATED TREES WERE KNOCKED DOWN BY A VERY WEAK AND BRIEF TORNADO ON THE WEST SIDE OF GREEN BAY NEAR NORTHEAST WISCONSIN TECHNICAL COLLEGE.
This page was developed by Phil Kurimski, Forecaster, NWS Green Bay.
Updated 7/2/04 by Jeff Last, Warning Coordination Meteorologist.
