NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Sauk City, 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
1 tropical system has passed within 75 miles of Sauk City, Wisconsin since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1900. Since 1950, 89 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 6 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 89
- EF3 or stronger
- 6
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
11 deaths in all
What the records show for Sauk City
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Sauk City; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 55 mph winds when its centre passed 65 miles away. Sauk City is tied for the most tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles among the 416 Wisconsin cities on this site. The strongest of the 89 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on June 7, 1984; its path came within 8 miles, and it killed 9 people. Of the 89, 8 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 45 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 31. The most recent tornado was on July 16, 2025. Sauk City has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 61% of the 416 Wisconsin cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 34 times since 1975, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 416 Wisconsin cities, 76% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Sauk City.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near Sauk City
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 11 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Sauk City: a hurricane's worst winds sit within a few dozen miles of its centre, and inland cities are usually past that.
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Sauk City
By decade
- 2020s10
- 2010s15(1 EF3+)
- 2000s20
- 1990s6
- 1980s12(1 EF3+)
- 1970s5
- 1960s16(4 EF3+)
- 1950s5
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 7, 1984 | F5 | 8 mi | 36 mi | 9 / 200 |
| Aug 2, 1967 | F3 | 19 mi | 0.1 mi | 2 / 5 |
| Jun 16, 2014 | EF3 | 21 mi | 0.96 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 16, 1963 | F3 | 3 mi | 9.6 mi | 0 / 13 |
| Aug 16, 1963 | F3 | 3 mi | 9.6 mi | 0 / 13 |
| Aug 16, 1963 | F3 | 3 mi | 9.6 mi | 0 / 13 |
| Jun 29, 2014 | EF2 | 13 mi | 29.07 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 16, 2014 | EF2 | 21 mi | 0.22 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 18, 2005 | F2 | 6 mi | 14.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 4, 1994 | F2 | 3 mi | 8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 26, 1989 | F2 | 21 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 8, 1988 | F2 | 10 mi | 7 mi | 0 / 1 |
The strongest 12 of 89, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Sauk City
The Storm Prediction Center has 34 hail reports within 10 miles of Sauk City since 1975, made on 29 separate days. Of these, 19 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest size, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), was reported on 5 days, most recently May 15, 2025. The most recent report is from May 15, 2025. August has the most reports, 9.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Sauk City
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Sauk City Wwtp, WI, 2 miles east of Sauk City at 750 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 82°F and low of 59°F; January is the coolest, at 27°F and 8°F. June is the wettest at 5.3 inches of precipitation on average and January and February the driest at 1.3 inches; the year adds up to 36.3 inches over 75 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 9 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 160 nights a year. That 36.3 inches is more than at 118 of the 165 Wisconsin stations used on this site (72%). Mazomanie, 6 miles south, has its own station (Mazomanie Wwtp, WI): 35.7 inches a year, 0.6 less than here, and the same July average high, 82°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 27 | 8 | 1.3 | 4 |
| Feb | 31 | 11 | 1.3 | 5 |
| Mar | 44 | 23 | 1.9 | 5 |
| Apr | 57 | 34 | 3.9 | 8 |
| May | 69 | 46 | 4.3 | 9 |
| Jun | 79 | 56 | 5.3 | 9 |
| Jul | 82 | 59 | 4.2 | 7 |
| Aug | 80 | 58 | 4.1 | 7 |
| Sep | 74 | 49 | 3.9 | 7 |
| Oct | 61 | 38 | 2.4 | 6 |
| Nov | 45 | 26 | 2.2 | 4 |
| Dec | 33 | 15 | 1.5 | 5 |
| Year | 57 | 35 | 36.3 | 75 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Sauk City Wwtp, WI (750 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 Sauk City
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 62 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Sauk City: 43 thunderstorm wind reports, 8 floods, 7 flash floods, 3 lightning strikes and 1 heavy rain event. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $70.1 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 81 mph, on July 18, 2012. June has had the most flash floods, 3 of 7. Of the 374 Wisconsin cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 217 have had fewer than Sauk City.
June 8, 2008: flash flood 6 miles from the centre of Sauk City — $55.7 million damage.
August 18, 2007: flash flood 7 miles from the centre of Sauk City — $11.8 million damage.
August 24, 2007: lightning strike 1 mile from the centre of Sauk City — $1.9 million damage.
NWS: “Lightning struck a commerical peg farm near Sauk City, killing about 1900 pigs. The exact location of the farm isn't known.”
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
Flood insurance policyholders in Sauk City's ZIP code 53583 have filed 14 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1999, and were paid $626,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 14% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 128 Wisconsin cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 19 have fewer than Sauk City.
Sauk County, which includes Sauk City, has been named in 15 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1976, 12 of them major disasters (by incident: 7 severe storms, 4 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 1 drought). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on June 30, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Sauk County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding and strong wind; Relatively Low for lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $35.6 million a year, the 23rd highest of 72 Wisconsin counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $20.4 million (57%), 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 Sauk City
- Prairie Du Sac, WI4 mi
- Mazomanie, WI6 mi
- Black Earth, WI9 mi
- North Freedom, WI10 mi
- Lodi, WI11 mi
- Dane, WI12 mi
- Cross Plains, WI12 mi
- Baraboo, WI15 mi
- Spring Green, WI17 mi
- Waunakee, WI17 mi
- Middleton, WI17 mi
- Barneveld, WI19 mi
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