Wisconsin winter storms
Every recorded winter storm record since 1996 · 72 counties with a record
NOAA's Storm Events Database records 10,237 winter storm records in Wisconsin from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 339 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the March 28, 2009 winter storm in Washington County: 6 deaths and 4 injuries across 2 records. Wisconsin ranks 7th of 51 states and territories by count and 17th of 50 per square mile.
Winter storms in Wisconsin, 1996 to 2026
Winter storm records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.
- recorded, no damage figure
- under $1 million
- $1 million or more
- $10 million or more
- $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
- $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
- a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
- a year with a death
- Records
- 10,2371996 to June 30, 2026
- A year since 2000
- 339average
- Deaths
- 138717 injuries
- Damage, 2025 dollars
- $36Mas filed
- Busiest year
- 2019681 records
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.
Are winter storm records common in Wisconsin?
Wisconsin averages about 339 winter storm records a year since 2000, 7th of 51 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2019 (681). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Wisconsin records 1890 winter storm records since 1996, 17th of 50 states and territories by that measure.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1996, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.
Which counties in Wisconsin have the most winter storm records?
Per square mile, Milwaukee County leads Wisconsin: 225 days with a winter storm record since 1996, 931.8 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Iron County has the most winter storm records (251 since 1996); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1996 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.
When is winter storm season in Wisconsin?
48% of its winter storm records since 1996 fell in January and February. The busiest month is January (2,470 records).
The values, month by month
Jan 2,470 · Feb 2,410 · Mar 1,518 · Apr 825 · May 25 · Jun 0 · Jul 0 · Aug 0 · Sep 0 · Oct 107 · Nov 599 · Dec 2,283 (records).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.
What were the deadliest winter storm records in Wisconsin?
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009-03-28 | Winter StormWashington County · forecast zone Washington One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. Strong low pressure tracked northeast from southeast Missouri to southeast Lower Michigan during the night of March 28th into the morning of March 29th. Maximum snowfall totals of 6 to 8 inches were recorded over Racine, Kenosha, and far southern Milwaukee counties. Specific accumulations included 8.3 inches 2NE of ... | 6 | 4 | – | |
| 2017-03-12 | Lake-Effect SnowMilwaukee County · forecast zone Milwaukee One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. A significant lake effect snowstorm occurred over eastern WI with snowfall totals of 1 to 2 feet. Hundreds of vehicles were involved in accidents and slide-offs including several large chain-reaction accidents on I-41 and I-43 on March 13th. No deaths occurred and only a small number of injuries were reported. ... | 5 | 10 | – | |
| 2018-02-03 | Winter WeatherFond du Lac County · forecast zone Fond Du Lac One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. A long duration period of relatively mild and moist air moving into the region, followed by a low pressure area and cold front resulted in several inches of snow accumulation. The long duration snow resulted in 4 to 8 inches of accumulation over much of southern WI. Numerous vehicle slide-offs and accidents occurred ... | 5 | 0 | – | |
| 2008-12-24 | Winter WeatherDodge County · forecast zone Dodge One storm episode: 4 records in 4 places; the totals are the episode's. Yet another low pressure system moving from the Southern Plains to Lower Michigan dumped light to moderate snow amounts across south-central and southeast Wisconsin. Snow accumulations were generally 3 to 4 inches, but amounts tapered off to 2 inches near Lake Michigan from Milwaukee south to Kenosha. Northwest winds ... | 4 | 8 | – | |
| 2019-01-18 | Winter WeatherSheboygan County · forecast zone Sheboygan One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. Strong low pressure moving across the Ohio River Valley spread a swath of moderate to heavy snow across southern WI. Lake effect snow contributed to the heavy snow accumulations near Lake MI. Many vehicle slide-offs and accidents occurred especially in the Milwaukee metro area. Two people were killed in a car accident ... | 4 | 2 | – | |
| 2007-12-01 | Winter StormColumbia County · forecast zone Columbia One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. The first major winter storm of the 2007-08 winter season affected all of south-central and southeast Wisconsin with a mix of snow, sleet, and freezing rain. The precipitation started off as snow (occasionally moderate to heavy) in the morning with accumulations eventually reaching around 2 inches near the Illinois ... | 4 | 0 | – | |
| 2008-11-24 | Winter WeatherKenosha County · forecast zone Kenosha One storm episode: 5 records in 5 places; the totals are the episode's. The first widespread snow event of the 2008-09 winter season for south-central and southeast Wisconsin consisted of 1 to 4.8 inches of snow accumulations. Accumulations of 4 to 4.8 inches occurred in eastern Columbia County, northwestern Dodge County, western Fond du Lac County, and southeastern Green Lake County. ... | 3 | 10 | – | |
| 2011-02-01 | BlizzardMilwaukee County · forecast zone Milwaukee One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. A powerful low pressure center, passing south of Wisconsin, produced blizzard conditions across much of southern Wisconsin from the evening hours of Tuesday, February 1st into the early morning of Wednesday, February 2nd. Snow associated with the system began in the mid-afternoon hours of February 1st in far southern ... | 3 | 3 | $13K | |
| 2009-03-28 | Winter WeatherIowa County · forecast zone Iowa One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. Strong low pressure tracked northeast from southeast Missouri to southeast Lower Michigan during the night of March 28th into the morning of March 29th. Maximum snowfall totals of 4 inches were recorded over Fond Du Lac, Iowa and northern Lafayette counties. Specifid accumulations included 4.1 inches 2NE of Darlington ... | 3 | 2 | – | |
| 2015-02-01 | Winter StormMilwaukee County · forecast zone Milwaukee Ten to twelve inches of snow accumulation. Whiteout and blizzard conditions near Lake MI, reaching as far inland as Mitchell Field, with frequent northeast wind gusts of 35-40 mph. Slightly better conditions inland from Lake MI, but still heavy snow and blowing snow with wind gusts from 25-34 mph. The Milwaukee County ... | 3 | 0 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed by the National Weather Service, summed over each storm (one episode, or one named storm filed by several offices). Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.
The costliest winter storm records in Wisconsin
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010-05-07 | Winter WeatherMarathon County · forecast zone Marathon | 0 | 0 | $20M | |
| 2011-03-22 | Winter StormEau Claire County · forecast zone Eau Claire | 0 | 0 | $3.9M | |
| 2018-04-13 | Winter StormKewaunee County · forecast zone Kewaunee One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $1.6M | |
| 2010-12-10 | Winter StormSt. Croix County · forecast zone St. Croix One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. | 2 | 0 | $1.6M | |
| 2019-03-09 | Winter WeatherBuffalo County · forecast zone Buffalo | 0 | 0 | $635K | |
| 1996-12-23 | Ice StormSauk County · forecast zone Sauk | 0 | 0 | $564K | |
| 2021-12-23 | Winter WeatherJackson County · forecast zone Jackson | 0 | 20 | $545K | |
| 2007-03-27 | Winter WeatherDane County · forecast zone Dane | 0 | 0 | $427K |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.
Are winter storm records becoming more frequent in Wisconsin?
Wisconsin's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.
| Decade | Wisconsin | United States | Wisconsin's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-99 | 1,143 | 32,893 | 3.5% |
| 2000s | 3,075 | 88,805 | 3.5% |
| 2010s | 3,466 | 103,626 | 3.3% |
| 2020-26 | 2,553 | 62,015 | 4.1% |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The most recent winter storm records in Wisconsin
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-04-04 | Ice StormIron County · forecast zone Iron | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-04-03 | Ice StormSawyer County · forecast zone Sawyer | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-04-03 | Ice StormWashburn County · forecast zone Washburn | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-04-03 | Ice StormBurnett County · forecast zone Burnett | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-04-03 | Ice StormDouglas County · forecast zone Douglas | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-04-03 | Ice StormOconto County · forecast zone Northern Oconto | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-04-03 | Ice StormPortage County · forecast zone Portage | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-04-03 | Ice StormMarathon County · forecast zone Marathon | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-04-03 | Ice StormOconto County · forecast zone Southern Oconto | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-04-03 | Ice StormMarinette County · forecast zone Northern Marinette | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-04-03 | Ice StormFlorence County · forecast zone Florence | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-04-03 | Winter StormOneida County · forecast zone Oneida | 0 | 0 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.
Federal disaster declarations for winter storm records in Wisconsin
FEMA has declared 5 disasters in Wisconsin for winter storm, counting its incident type and declarations that name snow or winter storm or ice storm or blizzard in the title (FEMA files most storm disasters under Severe Storm); 2 were major disasters, the latest on March 11, 2020.
| Declared | Number | Title | Areas named |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-03-11 | DR-4477 | Severe Winter Storm and Flooding | 3 |
| 2011-04-05 | DR-1966 | Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm | 11 |
| 2008-03-19 | EM-3285 | Record Snow and Near Record Snow | 11 |
| 2001-01-24 | EM-3163 | Snow | 14 |
| 1979-01-19 | EM-3069 | Blizzards & Snowstorms | 3 |
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), through October 2, 2026. OpenFEMA dataset page.
Next
- Milwaukee County: the county's whole recordThe Wisconsin county with the most winter storm records per square mile
- Winter storms across the United StatesEvery state ranked, by year and month
- Every natural hazard in WisconsinTornadoes, floods, storms, heat and the federal declarations
- Severe thunderstorm wind in Wisconsin13,005 records
- Hail in Wisconsin9,265 records
- Floods in Wisconsin2,580 records