Crawford County, Wisconsin severe weather history spans 381 recorded events between 1955 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 33.3% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,330 nationally and #30 in Wisconsin.
381
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
11
Direct injuries
$55.9M
Property damage
The record
What the Crawford County, Wisconsin severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Crawford County, Wisconsin severe weather history averages 5.4 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 152 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 41 events fall before 1990 and 340 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is flash flood, with $32.8M 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 Crawford County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 127 | 0 | $1.6M | 80 | 1971–2024 |
| Hail | 94 | 0 | $549K | 2.75 | 1964–2024 |
| Flood | 81 | 0 | $20.4M | 0 | 2007–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 40 | 0 | $32.8M | 0 | 1997–2024 |
| Heavy Rain | 23 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2009–2021 |
| Tornado | 14 | 0 | $607K | F2 | 1955–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2021–2021 |
Decade by decade
Crawford County, Wisconsin severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
18 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 13 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980-06-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 70.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 1964-05-04 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 9.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 1964-05-04 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 12.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 2017-07-19 | EF1 | 0 | 2 | 5.8 mi | Crossed in |
| 2009-07-27 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 4.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1971-06-24 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 34.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 1971-06-24 | EF1 | 0 | 4 | 4.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1967-05-18 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1965-04-11 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 13.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1955-04-18 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 13.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Crawford County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 25, 1971 | Tornado | 0 | 4 | $250K | |
| Jul 3, 1979 | Tornado | 0 | 3 | $250 | |
| May 5, 1964 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $250K | |
| Jun 18, 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | PRAIRIE DU CHIEN | 0 | 1 | $18K |
| May 31, 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | PRAIRIE DU CHIEN | 0 | 1 | $30K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Flash flooding and mudslides were reported over mainly the northern half of the county. Hardest hit areas were in the steep terrain and along Highway 35 from Lynxville to De Soto. Some roads were closed due to flood waters and in one case a large boulder fell on to Highway 35.||In Crawford County, about 415 people applied for FEMA assistance.
Runoff from heavy rain created historic flooding along the Kickapoo River in Gays Mills. The river established a new crest of record at 22.31 feet, which was over 9 feet above the flood stage. The flooding continued into early September.
A train derailment occurred near Ferryville when flood waters washed out the roadbed. Around 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel leaked out of one locomotive into the water. Runoff from heavy rains also washed out a portion of State Highway 35 south of Lynxville. A mudslide covered a portion of State Highways 35/82 south of De Soto. A mudslide northeast of Wauzeka sent a large boulder onto State Highway 60. State Highway 35 was closed between De Soto and Prairie du Chien due to flooding and mudslides. Roads were damaged across much of the county with the most damage occurring in the townships of Freeman, Utica, Clayton and Haney. Freeman was hit the hardest with every township road sustaining major damage. A large portion of Rush Creek Road north of Ferryville was washed out. The flooding also caused a large hole to form in State Highway 171 near Gays Mills. Two private structures were destroyed and another 67 damaged by the flooding.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
16,042
Population (ACS)
$183K
Median home value
22
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 |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Steuben 155
- Bell Center 147
- Soldiers Grove 128
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Crawford County, Wisconsin?
381 events are on record between 1955 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $55.9M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Crawford County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 127 recorded events — 33.3% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Crawford County?
18 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 13 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Crawford County?
22 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Crawford County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Crawford County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Crawford County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 46 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Crawford 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
- Columbia County 503
- Dane County 1,306
- Clark County 486
- Dodge County 621
- Chippewa County 444
- Door County 252
Cite this page
“Crawford County, Wisconsin.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/wisconsin/crawford-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.