Vernon County, Wisconsin severe weather history spans 586 recorded events between 1957 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 36.3% of all recorded events. It ranks #627 nationally and #10 in Wisconsin.
586
Recorded events
4
Direct deaths
6
Direct injuries
$138.1M
Property damage
The record
What the Vernon County, Wisconsin severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Vernon County, Wisconsin severe weather history averages 8.5 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 239 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 56 events fall before 1990 and 530 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Vernon County, Wisconsin record is flood, responsible for 2 direct deaths. The costliest is flash flood, with $78.2M 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 Vernon County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 213 | 0 | $2.1M | 78 | 1962–2025 |
| Hail | 150 | 0 | $27.1M | 2.75 | 1961–2026 |
| Flood | 108 | 2 | $25.1M | 0 | 2000–2024 |
| Flash Flood | 43 | 2 | $78.2M | 0 | 1996–2024 |
| Heavy Rain | 37 | 0 | $20K | 0 | 2009–2020 |
| Tornado | 25 | 0 | $5.0M | F3 | 1957–2026 |
| Funnel Cloud | 6 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2021 |
| Lightning | 4 | 0 | $572K | 0 | 2010–2019 |
Decade by decade
Vernon County, Wisconsin severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
25 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 24 touched down inside it and 1 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 | EF3 | 0 | 1 | 26.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-08-18 | EF2 | 0 | 3 | 20.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1980-06-05 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 70.2 mi | Crossed in |
| 1979-08-09 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1966-04-19 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 8.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1964-05-08 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 20.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2022-06-15 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 5.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-08-18 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 1.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1998-06-18 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1993-06-08 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 11.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Vernon County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 30, 2019 | Flood | VICTORY | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Sep 22, 2016 | Flood | VIROQUA MUNI ARPT | 1 | 0 | $986K |
| Sep 22, 2016 | Flash Flood | VIROQUA MUNI ARPT | 1 | 0 | $8.9M |
| May 9, 2004 | Flash Flood | SOUTHWEST PORTION | 1 | 0 | $15K |
| Jul 23, 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | STODDARD | 0 | 2 | $175K |
| Jun 15, 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | NEWRY | 0 | 2 | $35K |
| Aug 18, 2005 | Tornado | ESOFEA | 0 | 1 | $150K |
| Jun 6, 1980 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $2.5M |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
One man drowned in southern Vernon County when he attempted to drive his pickup across a flooded road. The pickup and cattle trailer he was pulling got stuck in the flood waters with the water eventually filling the passenger compartment of the truck.
An elderly woman drowned in Mississippi River flood waters in the vicinity of Blackhawk Park. Sometime during the night of March 29th into the early morning hours of March 30th, the woman wandered away from her home and was swept away by flood waters.
Flash floods and mudslides were reported across the county, with numerous county roads closed and impassable. Areas significantly impacted were from around Stoddard to Viroqua. At least 79 people were evacuated below local dams. Mudslides were especially dangerous along Highway 35 on the west end of the county washing away some homes and closing the highway for quite sometime. Railroad tracks were also damaged knocking over one set of rail cars that had hazardous material stored.||Over 1,100 people applied for FEMA assistance including 33 businesses in the county.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
31,049
Population (ACS)
$224K
Median home value
23
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 |
| Aug 27, 2019 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| 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 |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Readstown 168
- La Farge 122
- Ontario 121
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Vernon County, Wisconsin?
586 events are on record between 1957 and 2026, causing 4 direct deaths and $138.1M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Vernon County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 213 recorded events — 36.3% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Vernon County?
25 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 24 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Vernon County?
23 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Vernon County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Vernon County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Vernon County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 75 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Vernon 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
- Trempealeau County 573
- Vilas County 316
- Taylor County 293
- Walworth County 573
- Sheboygan County 276
- Washburn County 261
Cite this page
“Vernon County, Wisconsin.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/wisconsin/vernon-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.