Pierce County, Wisconsin severe weather history spans 335 recorded events between 1953 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 45.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,579 nationally and #41 in Wisconsin.
335
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
6
Direct injuries
$31.8M
Property damage
The record
What the Pierce County, Wisconsin severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Pierce County, Wisconsin severe weather history averages 4.6 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 114 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 57 events fall before 1990 and 278 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is hail, with $20.0M 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 Pierce County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 153 | 0 | $6.6M | 75 | 1977–2025 |
| Hail | 129 | 0 | $20.0M | 3 | 1964–2026 |
| Tornado | 27 | 0 | $5.1M | F3 | 1953–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 11 | 0 | $100K | 0 | 2005–2020 |
| Heavy Rain | 9 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2009–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2001–2023 |
| Lightning | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2005 |
| Flood | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2010–2010 |
Decade by decade
Pierce 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: 21 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1958-05-24 | EF3 | 0 | 12 | 59.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 1953-05-10 | EF2 | 4 | 27 | 105.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2010-07-14 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 6.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2010-07-14 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 15.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1981-06-14 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1979-10-03 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1967-07-22 | EF2 | 0 | 3 | 9.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1954-06-29 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 6.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2020-07-18 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 9.5 mi | Crossed in |
| 2017-06-28 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 11.4 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Pierce County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 23, 1967 | Tornado | 0 | 3 | $250K | |
| Jul 11, 1966 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $250K | |
| Jun 12, 1990 | 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
Several barns and sheds were destroyed, and structural damage was noted at some homes. Many trees were broken or snapped. This tornado was accompanied by strong rear flank downdraft winds, which also knocked down trees and damaged some sheds.
A storm survey determined a downburst hit the west side of Spring Valley. Numerous trees, sheds and power lines were blown down. A school gymnasium roof was damaged and a lot of the debris landed on houses and vehicles. A local resident stated that the severe winds persisted for several minutes.
A mesocyclone originated in Pierce County and caused widespread downburst damage across a 1.5 mile wide area. It knocked down many hundreds of trees, and partially removed the roof off of one house. The mesocyclone continued into Pepin County, where it continued to produce wind damage and then a tornado (see separate entries for Pepin County).
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
42,584
Population (ACS)
$334K
Median home value
13
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 4, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Sep 13, 2005 | Hurricane | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM |
| May 11, 2001 | Flood | FLOODING, SEVERE STORMS AND TORNADOES | DR |
| Jul 24, 1998 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS,STRAIGH LINE WINDS, TORNADOES,RAIN,AND FLOODI | DR |
| Jul 2, 1993 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES & FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Pierce County, Wisconsin?
335 events are on record between 1953 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $31.8M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Pierce County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 153 recorded events — 45.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Pierce County?
26 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 21 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Pierce County?
13 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Pierce County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Pierce County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Pierce County as very low risk, placing it in the 42 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Pierce 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
- Pepin County 135
- Polk County 367
- Ozaukee County 225
- Portage County 331
- Outagamie County 475
- Price County 347
Cite this page
“Pierce County, Wisconsin.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/wisconsin/pierce-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.