Richland County, Wisconsin severe weather history spans 268 recorded events between 1951 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 43.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,982 nationally and #56 in Wisconsin.
268
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
9
Direct injuries
$25.0M
Property damage
The record
What the Richland County, Wisconsin severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Richland County, Wisconsin severe weather history averages 3.6 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 85 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 43 events fall before 1990 and 225 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Richland County, Wisconsin record is flash flood, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $14.8M in reported property damage. In total, 7 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Richland County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 117 | 0 | $659K | 67 | 1963–2026 |
| Hail | 88 | 0 | $242K | 2.75 | 1963–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 26 | 1 | $14.8M | 0 | 1996–2018 |
| Flood | 17 | 0 | $5.8M | 0 | 1998–2019 |
| Tornado | 13 | 0 | $3.5M | F3 | 1951–2015 |
| Heavy Rain | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2013–2018 |
| Funnel Cloud | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2007–2013 |
Decade by decade
Richland County, Wisconsin severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
13 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 8 touched down inside it and 5 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1964-09-03 | EF3 | 0 | 4 | 17.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-08-18 | EF2 | 0 | 3 | 20.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1988-05-08 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 20.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-05-08 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 20.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 1951-07-03 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-08-18 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1973-06-26 | EF1 | 0 | 2 | 24.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1972-06-13 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1972-08-11 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 1967-08-01 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Richland County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 19, 2007 | Flash Flood | RICHLAND CENTER | 1 | 0 | $8.8M |
| Sep 3, 1964 | Tornado | 0 | 4 | $250K | |
| Aug 18, 2005 | Tornado | VIOLA | 0 | 3 | $2.5M |
| May 8, 1964 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $250K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Numerous state highways and county roads were closed and impassable due to flood waters. An estimated 75 percent of the county roads were affected including Highway 80 that was impassable with bridges buckled. Highways 56 and 58 were also impacted. At least a dozen boat rescues were needed from homes and cars. The town of Rockbridge was basically underwater. A 51-year old was swept off a bridge on Highway 60 near the intersection of Highway 80 on his way to Muscoda from Mill Creek.
Flooding along a branch of Camp Creek sent three feet of water into a house east of Viola. Flooding along Fancy and Marshall Creeks caused roads to be closed near Gillingham. State Highway 56 was closed east of Viola due to flooding along Camp Creek and County Highway C was closed near Yuba because of flooding along the Pine River. A total of 3 homes were destroyed by the flooding with another 72 damaged.
The Kickapoo river at Viola reached a record crest of 21.25 feet around 5 a.m. on June 9. The previous record crest of 21.0 feet occurred on July 1, 1978. Flood stage is 14.0 feet. Water was over bridge railings on the bridges.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
17,205
Population (ACS)
$198K
Median home value
19
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 4, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Oct 18, 2018 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, AND LANDSLIDES | DR |
| Oct 7, 2017 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUD | DR |
| Oct 20, 2016 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
| Aug 8, 2013 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, AND MUDSLIDES | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Richland County, Wisconsin?
268 events are on record between 1951 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $25.0M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Richland County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 117 recorded events — 43.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Richland County?
13 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 8 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Richland County?
19 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Richland County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Richland County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Richland County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 52 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Richland 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
- Racine County 434
- Rock County 735
- Price County 347
- Rusk County 202
- Portage County 331
- St. Croix County 428
Cite this page
“Richland County, Wisconsin.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/wisconsin/richland-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.