Milwaukee County, Wisconsin

What hazards hit Milwaukee County most?

The most frequent records are severe thunderstorm wind events: 250 since 1960. 57% of its severe thunderstorm wind events since 1960 fell in June and July. The rank column places the county among Wisconsin's counties by days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land over each hazard's complete period.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (county and forecast-zone records attributed to the county; a zone record shows its own totals on each county it covers). Days: dates with at least one record of the hazard in the county. Ranks: days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer), since 1950 for tornadoes, 1955 for hail and thunderstorm wind, 1996 for the rest.

How many tornadoes has Milwaukee County had?

NOAA records 19 tornadoes in Milwaukee County from 1958 to 2026, the strongest rated F2, with 0 deaths and 176 injuries recorded in the county. That is 1st of 72 Wisconsin counties and 139th of 3,080 U.S. counties by days with tornadoes per 1,000 square miles since 1950. A tornado that crossed a county line is counted in each county it touched, with the length of its path inside the county.

Counted as whole tornadoes rather than county records, the Storm Prediction Center's database holds 21 tornadoes whose track touched Milwaukee County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 19: they file a crossing tornado once per county segment, and the two databases differ on some tracks); along their whole tracks they killed 0 people.

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in Wisconsin.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, tornado records by county (path length in the county, maximum width); ratings as published: F scale before February 1, 2007, EF scale after. Whole-track figures: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database (1950-2025). SPC severe weather database.

When was the last damaging storm in Milwaukee County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the April 27, 2026 high wind ($250,000 in damage in 2025 dollars).

Measured wind gust of 77 mph at General Mitchell International Airport. The city of Milwaukee received more than 200 calls for downed trees and branches. Many reports of trees landing on homes, vehicles, and roads. Similar reports also in the suburbs of Milwaukee County. More than 50 percent of the roof torn off a warehouse building in the Port of Milwaukee. Approximately 51,000 We Energies customers were without power due to downed powerlines.
National Weather Service event narrative, NOAA Storm Events Database (search the full record, event 1333714)

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database; every record of 2025-2026 is listed, earlier ones when they caused deaths, injuries or $250,000 of damage (2025 dollars), and every tornado.

The deadliest and costliest records

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths and injuries direct and indirect; damage is property plus crops as estimated by the National Weather Service, converted to 2025 dollars.

Is it getting more frequent?

Records per decade for Milwaukee County's most frequent hazards. Counts rose everywhere after 1996, when NOAA began recording every event type, so compare decades within a hazard's complete period only (the shaded cells come before it).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records per calendar decade; zone records from the CZ_TYPE field (Z).

What time of year?

57% of its severe thunderstorm wind events since 1960 fell in June and July. The two busiest months are in violet.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began.

Federal disaster declarations for Milwaukee County

FEMA's register lists 22 declarations that include Milwaukee County: 17 major disasters, 5 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for flood (8) and severe storm (7).

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), declarations through October 2, 2026; one declaration is counted once however many areas it names. OpenFEMA dataset page.

How many floods has Milwaukee County had?

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 76 flood or flash flood records for Milwaukee County from 1996 to 2026, on 67 days, with 5 deaths. By flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA, as of September 8, 2026), Milwaukee County ranks 163rd of 2,942 U.S. counties.

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $29.0 million on 2,435 claims filed in Milwaukee County; the most in one year was 688 in 1998. Claims count insured losses only: uninsured flood damage is not in this file.

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims, as of September 8, 2026; claims by year of loss, payments in the dollars of the year paid. OpenFEMA dataset page.

FEMA's modeled risk for Milwaukee County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Milwaukee County Relatively High overall, with an expected annual loss of $342 million. These are FEMA's model estimates of future loss from 18 hazards, not a count of what happened; they can differ from the record above.

Source: FEMA National Risk Index, county table, December 2025 release. FEMA's National Risk Index map.

Counties that share a border with Milwaukee County

1. Waukesha County 1,260
2. Milwaukee County 1,113
3. Racine County 917
4. Washington County 882
5. Ozaukee County 670
6. Ottawa County, MI 530
7. Muskegon County, MI 399

Source: U.S. Census Bureau county adjacency file; NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1950. The Census Bureau's adjacency file.

Next

• Tornadoes in WisconsinEvery Wisconsin tornado since 1950 and the counties with the most per square mile
• Severe thunderstorm wind in WisconsinThe state's severe thunderstorm wind events, by county, year and month
• The Wisconsin recordEvery hazard in the state, its deadliest events and its federal declarations
• FEMA's risk rating for each hazard in Milwaukee CountyThe hazard risk calculator: 18 hazards beside the county's record
• Download Milwaukee County's FEMA declarations (CSV)22 rows: every declaration that named the county, for your own analysis