Lake-effect Snow and Whiteout Conditions in the Great Lakes Region; Below-average Temperatures in the East

Heavy lake-effect and lake-enhanced snow will persist downwind of the Great Lakes and produce some whiteout conditions that could cause difficult travel conditions. A coastal low will produce moderate to heavy snow over parts of southern and eastern New England into the afternoon. Below average temperatures are expected across the eastern U.S., particularly with chilly morning temperatures. Read More >

Overview

During the late afternoon and evening of August 23rd, a warm front lifted north through central Wisconsin. At the same time, a strong upper level disturbance was moving across the Upper Midwest and northern Great Lakes. These two features combined to generate scattered severe thunderstorms over central Wisconsin that then moved off into east central Wisconsin during the evening.

The storms initially produced large hail, some of which were the size of golf balls near Thorp in the northwestern section of Clark County. As the storms continued to move southeast, a tornado formed near the small community of Chili, WI. (see below)

Shortly after this damage occurred, the storm began to weaken as it moved off into Wood and Jackson Counties. Another storm developed as the first one was dissipating, which tracked across southern Clark County into northern Jackson County. This storm produced walnut sized hail in Neillsville. The storm weakened as it left Jackson County and entered northern Juneau County.

The tornado as seen from the Neillsville, WI area.

Tornado
Photos
Radar
Storm Reports

Tornadoes:

Tornado - Chili, WI
Clark County

Date	August 23, 2011
Time (Local)	5:05 - 5:30 p.m.
EF Rating	EF2
Est. Peak Winds	130 mph
Path Length	7.2 miles
Max Width	200 yards
Injuries/Deaths	2 / 0
Summary: The tornado formed 7 miles northwest of Chili at about 5:05 p.m. This EF2 tornado traveled approximately 7.2 miles east-southeastward before lifting around 5:30 p.m. about 2 miles north - northeast of Chili. The maximum width of this tornado was around 200 yards and had winds estimated at between 120 and 130 mph. The tornado knocked a house off its foundation, blew roofs off houses, destroyed or damaged barns and trees, and power lines were blown down. In addition, two people suffered minor injuries.

Track Map

The Enhanced Fujita (EF) Scale classifies tornadoes into the following categories:

EF0 Weak 65-85 mph	EF1 Moderate 86-110 mph	EF2 Significant 111-135 mph	EF3 Severe 136-165 mph	EF4 Extreme 166-200 mph	EF5 Catastrophic 200+ mph

Photos:


Tornado evidence in the corn, beginning of track.	First barn to suffer a direct hit from tornado near Bobwhite Rd and Pelsdorf Ave.	Damage to mobile home storage unit near Bobwhite Rd. and Romadka Ave.	Home just missed as tornado passed to the south 100 yds.


Heavy damage to residence about 3 miles into tornado track. Higher end EF2 damage near Bobwhite Rd and Catlin Ave.	Closer image of higher end EF2 damage near Bobwhite Rd and Catlin Ave.Top floor and roof missing. Two persons survived in basement.	Second residence with heavy damage near Heintown Rd and Division Ave. Unanchored home was slid about 20 feet off foundation. EF1 to EF2 damage in this vicinity with 200 yard tornado width.	Larger picture of second residence with heavy damage near Heintown Rd and Division Ave. Facing due east along tornado path.


West side of second residence with heavy damage near Heintown Rd and Division Ave. Two persons survived in the house.	Photo of tornado near Neillsville, WI (Photo courtesy of WSAW)	Photo of tornado near Neillsville, WI (Photo courtesy of WSAW)	Photo of tornado near Neillsville, WI (Photo courtesy of WSAW)


Photo of Supercell near Neillsville taken from jet at 40,000ft.	Photo of Supercell near Neillsville taken from jet at 40,000ft.

Radar:


Caption	Caption	Reflectivity at 5:21 p.m.	Storm Relative Velocity at 5:21 p.m.


Caption

Storm Reports

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT...SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LA CROSSE WI
856 PM CDT TUE AUG 23 2011

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0424 PM     HAIL             THORP                   44.96N 90.80W
08/23/2011 M1.75 INCH       CLARK              WI   TRAINED SPOTTER

0444 PM     HAIL             3 S THORP               44.92N 90.80W
08/23/2011 M1.00 INCH       CLARK              WI   LAW ENFORCEMENT

0501 PM     HAIL             LOYAL                   44.74N 90.50W
08/23/2011 M1.00 INCH       CLARK              WI   PUBLIC

0515 PM     TORNADO          5 NW CHILI              44.68N 90.42W
08/23/2011                   CLARK              WI   PUBLIC

0520 PM     TSTM WND DMG     1 S CHILI               44.62N 90.35W
08/23/2011                   CLARK              WI   TRAINED SPOTTER

0520 PM     TSTM WND DMG     1 S CHILI               44.62N 90.35W
08/23/2011                   CLARK              WI   TRAINED SPOTTER

            POWER LINES DOWN ON PINE CREEK ROAD AND COUNTY Y

0530 PM     TORNADO          CHILI                   44.63N 90.35W
08/23/2011                   CLARK              WI   EMERGENCY MNGR

            HOUSE OFF FOUNDATION...POWER LINES DOWN...ROOFS OFF
            HOUSES...AND BARNS DESTROYED

0544 PM     HAIL             NEILLSVILLE             44.56N 90.59W
08/23/2011 M1.25 INCH       CLARK              WI   TRAINED SPOTTER

0558 PM     TSTM WND DMG     2 NE CHILI              44.65N 90.32W
08/23/2011                   CLARK              WI   TRAINED SPOTTER

            POWER LINES DOWN. POSSIBLE TORNADO DAMAGE.

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Lake-effect Snow and Whiteout Conditions in the Great Lakes Region; Below-average Temperatures in the East

Severe Weather of August 23, 2011 - Chili Tornado