Trempealeau County, Wisconsin severe weather history spans 573 recorded events between 1959 and 2026. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 35.6% of all recorded events. It ranks #657 nationally and #11 in Wisconsin.
573
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
13
Direct injuries
$33.8M
Property damage
The record
What the Trempealeau County, Wisconsin severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Trempealeau County, Wisconsin severe weather history averages 8.6 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 240 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 58 events fall before 1990 and 515 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Trempealeau County, Wisconsin record is lightning, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $7.3M 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 Trempealeau County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 204 | 0 | $5.6M | 3.5 | 1963–2026 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 199 | 0 | $6.6M | 78 | 1968–2025 |
| Flood | 78 | 0 | $7.1M | 0 | 2009–2026 |
| Heavy Rain | 33 | 0 | $45K | 0 | 2009–2023 |
| Tornado | 27 | 0 | $7.3M | F3 | 1959–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 21 | 0 | $5.6M | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Lightning | 6 | 1 | $1.6M | 0 | 2006–2021 |
| Funnel Cloud | 5 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2001–2020 |
Decade by decade
Trempealeau County, Wisconsin severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
26 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 19 touched down inside it and 7 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1953-05-10 | EF4 | 2 | 24 | 162.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1959-05-26 | EF3 | 0 | 2 | 34.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1968-03-27 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 5.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-05-23 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 21.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1960-06-28 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 12.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 2024-05-21 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2021-09-20 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 8.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2021-12-15 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.9 mi | Crossed in |
| 2021-12-15 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2020-07-18 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.6 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Trempealeau County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2, 2006 | Lightning | BLAIR | 1 | 1 | $0 |
| Aug 6, 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | DEWEY CORNERS | 0 | 4 | $20K |
| Jul 20, 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | GALESVILLE | 0 | 2 | $50K |
| Jul 5, 1978 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $0 | |
| Sep 20, 2021 | Tornado | RUSSELL | 0 | 1 | $450K |
| May 26, 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | CHIMNEY ROCK | 0 | 1 | $20K |
| Sep 23, 2010 | Flood | ARCADIA | 0 | 1 | $8K |
| Mar 28, 1968 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $250K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Thunderstorms impacted the central portion of Trempealeau County near and in Blair. Nearly every structure in Blair was either damaged or destroyed by the hail or wind, with broken windows, siding or roof damage. The Blair-Taylor high and elementary schools suffered major damage to their roofs. A 25 to 30 unit mobile home park was evacuated after several mobile homes were moved off their foundations and ruptured natural gas lines. Numerous trees and power lines were blown down with power outages lasting up to 16 hours.
Heavy rains, with totals of 6 to 8 inches, produced flash flooding across the southern sections of Trempealeau County. Arcadia was hit the hardest by the flash flooding. Water rescues had to be performed and all roads in and out of the city were closed due to flood waters. Oak Street was washed out and the water flooded dozens of homes and businesses. One manufacturing plant was destroyed by the flooding and a basement wall of one home collapsed. The manufacturing company lost over $1.5 million because of lost production. State Highway 95 was closed between Arcadia and the Jackson County line because of flooding along Turton and Lakes Coulee Creeks and the Trempealeau River. In Galesville, business along Tamarack Creek were inundated by flood water, including the fire station. The swing bridge over the creek was washed away. Numerous roads were covered by 1 to 2 feet of water including portions of U.S. Highway 53, State Highway 93 and County Roads D and T. At least 15 roads across the county were closed because of the flooding.
After the initial flash flooding across Trempealeau County, the flood waters continued to cause problems through July 20th into the 21st. Flooding along the Little Tamarack Creek caused evacuations to occur in Galesville and flooded the fire department building. Homes in Galesville and Blair were reported to have 5 to 6 feet of water in some basements. Two homes were destroyed, 12 sustained major damage and 52 suffered minor damage during the flooding.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
30,839
Population (ACS)
$217K
Median home value
15
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 4, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Oct 7, 2017 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUD | DR |
| 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 |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Butman Corners 189
- Pine Creek 167
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Trempealeau County, Wisconsin?
573 events are on record between 1959 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $33.8M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Trempealeau County?
Hail, with 204 recorded events — 35.6% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Trempealeau County?
26 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 19 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Trempealeau County?
15 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Trempealeau County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Trempealeau County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Trempealeau County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 59 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Trempealeau 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
- Taylor County 293
- Vernon County 586
- Sheboygan County 276
- Vilas County 316
- Shawano County 287
- Walworth County 573
Cite this page
“Trempealeau County, Wisconsin.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/wisconsin/trempealeau-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.