One of the most active severe weather weeks in recent memory is slowly winding down across the United States, but not before leaving a trail of destruction that stretched from California to Vermont. The National Weather Service confirmed at least 35 tornadoes across 10 states over the course of the week, with Wisconsin, Iowa and Illinois absorbing the worst of the repeated outbreaks.
At the peak of the threat, roughly 26 million people were under tornado watches stretching from Wisconsin down to Oklahoma. Forecasters assigned a rare “particularly dangerous situation” designation to at least three tornadoes — one in Illinois and two in Wisconsin — underscoring the exceptional severity of the week’s storms.
Deadly impact and a state of emergency
The human toll has been real. In Waukesha, Wis., a man died after being struck by lightning during the thunderstorms that hammered the state. In Milwaukee, flash flooding swamped a major freeway, stranding drivers and forcing extended road closures. Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers declared a state of emergency, triggering a coordinated response from law enforcement, fire services and emergency agencies across the state.
In Buffalo County, Wis., the local sheriff’s office documented roof damage to at least one home, with wooden debris scattered across surrounding yards. Hundreds of miles away in Stewartville, Minn., residents captured video of a neighborhood block where homes suffered blown-out windows and caved-in garage doors.
Friday’s severe reports top 300
Friday alone generated more than 300 severe weather reports filed from Oklahoma north to Minnesota and east through Indiana. Wind gusts exceeding 75 mph tore through Missouri, Iowa and Illinois. Baseball-sized hail was reported in Illinois and Oklahoma, while golf ball-sized hail struck Oklahoma, Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin. The National Weather Service noted that hailstones of that caliber can reach falling speeds of around 107 mph, making them a serious physical danger to anyone caught outdoors.
Where the risk remains Saturday
A slight risk for additional severe storms remains in effect Saturday across parts of Ohio, West Virginia, western Pennsylvania and western New York, affecting cities including Buffalo, Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Charleston, W.Va. The main threats are damaging winds and large hail, though an isolated tornado and pockets of flash flooding remain possible.
Whether those storms fully materialize depends on how much the atmosphere can recover after morning rain moves through the region. Enough energy could build by late afternoon to spark organized severe weather. If conditions do not rebound sufficiently, the area may see only heavy rain and isolated thunder.
Heat grips the South as the front pushes east
The cold front driving this week’s stormy pattern will continue its march eastward into the Northeast on Sunday, delivering rain and some higher-elevation snow before exiting off the coast. Ahead of it, the Southeast spent much of the week enduring record heat. Saturday brought another round of potential record highs from Louisiana across Florida and into Georgia, offering a preview of summer conditions before the front arrives to cool things down.
Flooding lingers in the Midwest
Even as the storm threat eases, flooding continues to affect communities in Wisconsin and Michigan. Persistent rainfall over several days, accelerated in some areas by rapidly melting snowpack, has kept water levels elevated. Drier conditions are expected to move in over the weekend and hold into the following week, giving both states the chance to begin recovery and allow floodwaters to recede.