NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Birchwood, WI
Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.
Data: NOAA NHC HURDAT2 and NOAA SPC tornado and hail reports, through 2025 · Updated
No tropical storm or hurricane has passed within 75 miles of Birchwood, Wisconsin since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 37 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 37
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
3 deaths in all
What the records show for Birchwood
The highest rating among the 37 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3 or EF3, reached 3 times; the most recent, on May 16, 2017, came within 25 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on June 18, 2001, killed 2 people. Of the 37, 2 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 8 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 11. The most recent tornado was on June 24, 2021. Of the 416 Wisconsin cities on this site, 89% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Birchwood. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 19 times since 1987, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 416 Wisconsin cities, 97% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Birchwood.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Birchwood
By decade
- 2020s1
- 2010s4(1 EF3+)
- 2000s3(2 EF3+)
- 1990s11
- 1980s3
- 1970s5
- 1960s8
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 18, 2001 | F3 | 24 mi | 34 mi | 2 / 16 |
| May 16, 2017 | EF3 | 25 mi | 82.53 mi | 1 / 25 |
| Sep 2, 2002 | F3 | 24 mi | 16 mi | 0 / 27 |
| Apr 26, 1994 | F2 | 11 mi | 4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 11, 1990 | F2 | 16 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 11, 1990 | F2 | 20 mi | 1.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 3, 1986 | F2 | 23 mi | 4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 12, 1982 | F2 | 22 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 24, 1975 | F2 | 25 mi | 34.2 mi | 0 / 6 |
| Jul 22, 1967 | F2 | 24 mi | 49.1 mi | 0 / 6 |
| May 7, 1965 | F2 | 19 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 5, 1965 | F2 | 22 mi | 4.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 37, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Birchwood
The Storm Prediction Center has 19 hail reports within 10 miles of Birchwood since 1987, made on 14 separate days. Of these, 11 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on June 1, 1987. The most recent report is from July 14, 2023. June has the most reports, 7.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Birchwood
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Couderay 7 W, WI, 10 miles northeast of Birchwood at 1,300 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 79°F and low of 55°F; January is the coolest, at 22°F and 2°F. June is the wettest at 5.3 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 1.3 inches; the year adds up to 40.3 inches over 83 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 3 days a year, almost all from July. Lows fall below freezing on about 194 nights a year. Snowfall averages 67.2 inches a year, most of it in February. That 40.3 inches is more than at 164 of the 165 Wisconsin stations used on this site (99%). Rice Lake, 13 miles southwest, has its own station (Rice Lake, WI): 31.5 inches a year, 8.8 less than here, and a July average high of 81°F against 79°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 22 | 2 | 1.3 | 5 | 11.3 |
| Feb | 27 | 4 | 1.5 | 5 | 15.6 |
| Mar | 39 | 17 | 2.2 | 5 | 12.2 |
| Apr | 53 | 29 | 3.5 | 8 | 6.0 |
| May | 67 | 40 | 4.6 | 8 | 0.1 |
| Jun | 75 | 51 | 5.3 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 79 | 55 | 5.1 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 77 | 53 | 4.5 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 69 | 46 | 4.3 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 55 | 34 | 3.8 | 7 | 1.3 |
| Nov | 39 | 22 | 2.3 | 6 | 6.5 |
| Dec | 27 | 10 | 1.9 | 6 | 14.2 |
| Year | 52 | 30 | 40.3 | 83 | 67.2 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Couderay 7 W, WI (1,300 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.
Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Birchwood
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 20 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Birchwood: 19 thunderstorm wind reports and 1 flash flood. They killed 1 person and injured 3, and the NWS estimated $40,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 69 mph, on June 11, 2005.
June 17, 2018: thunderstorm wind 7 miles from the centre of Birchwood — 1 killed, 3 injured.
NWS: “Strong thunderstorm winds blew over an oak tree onto an occupied camper, killing one of the occupants and injuring 3 others. Numerous trees were blown over roadways in the area as well.”
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, events whose starting point is on record, 1996 to June 30, 2026. Damage is the NWS estimate in the dollars of the year, not insured losses, and NWS notes that some reports are unverified.
Flood insurance claims, disaster declarations and FEMA risk ratings
Washburn County, which includes Birchwood, has been named in 10 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 6 of them major disasters (by incident: 3 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 2 tornadoes, 1 drought). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 4, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Washburn County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for lightning; Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail and strong wind; Very Low for inland flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $10.3 million a year, the 64th highest of 72 Wisconsin counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $3.7 million (36%), is from inland flooding.
Claims: FEMA, OpenFEMA Dataset FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims – v3, summed over ZIP codes; payments in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Declarations: Disaster Declarations Summaries – v2, by county. Retrieved October 25, 2026. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
Risk ratings: FEMA, National Risk Index county table, December 2025 (v1.20), retrieved October 26, 2026; ratings compare counties nationwide, are meant for planning and are no substitute for a local risk assessment. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.
Cities near Birchwood
- Rice Lake, WI13 mi
- Bruce, WI19 mi
- Cameron, WI20 mi
- Shell Lake, WI22 mi
- Spooner, WI23 mi
- Barron, WI24 mi
- Chetek, WI25 mi
- Ladysmith, WI25 mi
- Hayward, WI25 mi
- Cumberland, WI26 mi
- New Auburn, WI29 mi
- Holcombe, WI34 mi
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