Marathon County, Wisconsin severe weather history spans 634 recorded events between 1950 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 45.3% of all recorded events. It ranks #506 nationally and #6 in Wisconsin.
634
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
25
Direct injuries
$46.9M
Property damage
The record
What the Marathon County, Wisconsin severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Marathon County, Wisconsin severe weather history averages 8.3 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 164 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 101 events fall before 1990 and 533 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $25.1M in reported property damage. In total, 8 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Marathon County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 287 | 0 | $2.8M | 83 | 1961–2025 |
| Hail | 221 | 0 | $13K | 3 | 1962–2026 |
| Tornado | 63 | 0 | $25.1M | F3 | 1950–2026 |
| Lightning | 19 | 0 | $16.9M | 0 | 1996–2013 |
| Funnel Cloud | 13 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2014 |
| Flash Flood | 13 | 0 | $2.1M | 0 | 2000–2026 |
| Heavy Rain | 11 | 0 | $88K | 0 | 1997–2015 |
| Flood | 7 | 0 | $13K | 0 | 2000–2016 |
Decade by decade
Marathon County, Wisconsin severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
63 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 52 touched down inside it and 11 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1958-06-04 | EF4 | 4 | 3 | 59.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 1977-08-31 | EF4 | 0 | 10 | 31.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-04-10 | EF3 | 0 | 2 | 21.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1971-09-28 | EF3 | 0 | 5 | 49.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 1971-09-28 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 78.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 1950-06-25 | EF2 | 1 | 0 | 7.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 2025-05-15 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 2007-06-07 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 7.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1997-07-16 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 3.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 1996-08-07 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.5 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Marathon County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 1, 1977 | Tornado | 0 | 10 | $2.5M | |
| Aug 19, 1968 | Tornado | 0 | 5 | $2.5M | |
| Jul 19, 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | HOGARTY | 0 | 3 | $0 |
| May 8, 1988 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $2.5M | |
| Jun 26, 2013 | Lightning | RIB FALLS | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jul 14, 2010 | Lightning | WAUSAU | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Sep 2, 2002 | Tornado | WAUSAU | 0 | 1 | $1.3M |
| May 31, 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | MOSINEE | 0 | 1 | $350K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Lightning struck a 321 megawatt power plant in the Wausau area, causing damage severe enough to keep it off-line until late 2007 or early 2008. In addition to the cost of repairs to the plant, the utility company will have to pay at least an addition $30 million to purchase power to replace the amount that would have been generated by the plant while repairs are made. The plant was equipted with a state-of-the-art lightning suppression system that was operational at the time of the strike.
A lightning strike at 2:29 am CDT on August 23 generated a fire at the Gordon Aluminum Industries in Schofield. The fire destroyed a row of offices and generated enough heat to incapacitate nearby machinery. In addition to the fire damage at the plant, $300 million worth of unfinished aluminum had varying degrees of corrosion as a result of the smoke, ash, and water used to douse the flames.||The lightning strike rattled residences in the area. A blown gas main valve near the apparent source of the fire served to fuel the blaze.
Heavy rain fell across Marathon County, causing rivers and streams to overflow their banks, washing out roads and damaging homes and businesses. Rainfall totals across the county were mostly in excess of 3.50 inches. The highest recorded total was 5.17 inches at Spencer. Twenty-seven residents were evacuated from 9 homes, mainly along River Road, in Marathon City due to flooding on the Big Rib River and basements of all homes along River Road were flooded. The flooding caused minor damage to 4 homes, major damage to 1 and destroyed 3 others. One business sustained minor damage. A school bus became stranded in high water in the northern part of the county and its occupants were evacuated.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Moderate
FEMA NRI risk rating
138,403
Population (ACS)
$220K
Median home value
12
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 30, 2026 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 4, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Oct 21, 2010 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
| Sep 13, 2005 | Hurricane | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM |
| Jun 18, 2004 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Marathon County, Wisconsin?
634 events are on record between 1950 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $46.9M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Marathon County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 287 recorded events — 45.3% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Marathon County?
63 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 52 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Marathon County?
12 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Marathon County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Marathon County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Marathon County as relatively moderate risk, placing it in the 87 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Marathon County, Wisconsin severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Manitowoc County 275
- Marinette County 271
- Lincoln County 287
- Marquette County 237
- Menominee County 71
- Langlade County 208
Cite this page
“Marathon County, Wisconsin.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/wisconsin/marathon-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.