Severe storms that swept through southeastern Wisconsin on Tuesday evening triggered tornado warnings in Milwaukee, Waukesha and Washington counties, but all warnings had expired by 9 p.m., according to the National Weather Service.
As of 10 p.m., more than 40,000 We Energies customers were without power across the region. The utility’s outage map showed Milwaukee County leading with 22,578 customers in the dark, followed by Waukesha County with 11,318 and Washington County with 2,477.
The storms first developed in the late afternoon, with the National Weather Service issuing a severe thunderstorm watch for Dodge, Fond du Lac, Jefferson, Ozaukee, Sheboygan, Walworth, Washington and Waukesha counties. That watch was later expanded to include Milwaukee and Racine counties and remained in effect until 10 p.m.
Several tornado warnings were issued during the evening. One for southwestern Dodge County was in effect until 6:30 p.m., with the storm located 7 miles south of Rio and 10 miles west of Columbus, moving east at 40 mph. Later, a tornado warning was issued for Washington and Waukesha counties that expired at 7:15 p.m., followed by another for central Milwaukee County until 7:30 p.m. The National Weather Service cautioned that flying debris could be dangerous and that the storms could damage roofs, windows, vehicles and trees.
In the midst of the warnings, power outages climbed steadily. By 7:25 p.m., Milwaukee County had 18,220 outages; Waukesha County had 9,542 and Washington County had 2,474 at 7:05 p.m. The numbers kept growing as the night went on.
The National Weather Service also emphasized safety measures for residents. “Get as low as possible,” the agency said, advising people to take shelter in a basement or the lowest floor of a building, with as many walls between themselves and the outside as possible. Those driving were told not to try to outrun a tornado, but to safely pull over and find a sturdy building. As a last resort, lying flat in a depression, ditch or culvert and covering the head was recommended.
The overall severe weather risk had been assessed as Level 1 out of 5, but forecasters still warned of gusty winds, small hail and heavy rain as the storms moved through the region.
