Late Season Wisconsin Tornadoes Catch Forecasters By Surprise Wednesday

A line of thunderstorms associated with a passing cold front took an unexpected severe turn Wednesday, October 12, 2022, catching national weather personnel off guard.

The line of storms was expected but the storms were not expected to be severe.

The Storm Prediction Center in Norman Oklahoma, which puts out a daily thunderstorm outlook, had Wisconsin in a general thunderstorm outlook area. Meaning rain with an occasional rumble of thunder.

As the line approached southeast Wisconsin, unforeseen conditions in the atmosphere caused areas of the line to start rotating, prompting National Weather Service officials to issue several tornado warnings for Waukesha, Rock, Walworth Jefferson, Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Racine and Kenosha Counties.

The Storm Prediction Centers storm reports page has six touchdowns documented for southeast Wisconsin.

Officials from the weather service office in Sullivan, Wisconsin will be out surveying damage to determine exactly how many twisters actually touched down.