Weather Guides
- Madison Snowfall HistoryEvery winter's snowfall since 1884, with a free CSV.Read the Guide
- Frost Dates and Frost DepthWhen the last and first frost come, and how deep footings go.Read the Guide
- Tornado SirensMonthly tests, what the sirens mean and where to shelter.Read the Guide
- Flooding and Lake LevelsYahara lake records, flood maps and flood insurance.Read the Guide
- Power OutagesReporting to MGE or Alliant, generator and food safety.Read the Guide
- Lake Mendota IceFreeze and thaw dates since 1855, with a free CSV.Read the Guide
Tornadoes in Dane County Since 1950
- 78Tornadoes, 1950-2025
- 5Rated F3/EF3, the strongest here
- 4Deaths
- 109Injuries
- 78 tornadoes in NOAA's Storm Prediction Center database list Dane County on their path from 1950 through 2025.(NOAA SPC) By rating: 28 rated F0/EF0, 29 rated F1/EF1, 16 rated F2/EF2, 5 rated F3/EF3 on the F or EF scale.
- June is the peak. 29 came in June, 17 in July and 11 in May.
- More are recorded now. 1950s 2, 1960s 9, 1970s 9, 1980s 10, 1990s 7, 2000s 16, 2010s 15, 2020s* 10.
- The most recent in the database was July 16, 2025, rated EF0. Tornadoes from 2026 aren't in NOAA's final file yet.
* 2020-2025.
Download the data (CSV) · 78 rows · checked 2026-10-10
The Strongest and Deadliest
| Date | Rating | Deaths | Injuries | Path |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 11, 1965 | F1 | 0 | 40 | 27.1 mi long, 167 yd wide, also other counties |
| Aug 2, 1967 | F3 | 2 | 5 | 0.1 mi long, 200 yd wide |
| June 4, 1975 | F3 | 0 | 0 | 2.3 mi long, 33 yd wide |
| March 27, 1991 | F2 | 1 | 5 | 32 mi long, 440 yd wide, also other counties |
| June 17, 1992 | F3 | 0 | 30 | 16 mi long, 400 yd wide |
| Aug 18, 2005 | F3 | 1 | 23 | 18.6 mi long, 600 yd wide, also other counties |
| June 16, 2014 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 0.96 mi long, 100 yd wide |
Tornado warnings set off Dane County's outdoor sirens; that guide covers the monthly test and where to shelter. After hail, see roof and hail damage.
Federal Disaster Declarations
FEMA's records list 19 declarations that included Dane County, from 1976 to 2020. "Individual assistance" means homeowners and renters could apply for federal help.(OpenFEMA)
| Year | Event | Declaration | Individual assistance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Severe Storms, Icing, Wind & Flooding | Major disaster DR-496 | No |
| 1976 | Drought | Emergency EM-3014 | No |
| 1978 | Severe Storms, Flooding, Hail & Tornadoes | Major disaster DR-559 | No |
| 1984 | Severe Storms & Tornadoes | Major disaster DR-710 | No |
| 1990 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes & Flooding | Major disaster DR-874 | No |
| 1991 | Severe Storms & Hail | Major disaster DR-912 | No |
| 1992 | Severe Storms & Tornadoes | Major disaster DR-963 | No |
| 1993 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes & Flooding | Major disaster DR-994 | No |
| 2000 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Major disaster DR-1332 | No |
| 2001 | Snow | Emergency EM-3163 | No |
| 2004 | Severe Storms And Flooding | Major disaster DR-1526 | Yes |
| 2005 | Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Emergency EM-3249 | No |
| 2007 | Severe Storms And Flooding | Major disaster DR-1719 | Yes |
| 2008 | Record Snow And Near Record Snow | Emergency EM-3285 | No |
| 2008 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Major disaster DR-1768 | Yes |
| 2011 | Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Major disaster DR-1966 | No |
| 2018 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, And Landslides | Major disaster DR-4402 | Yes |
| 2020 | Covid-19 | Emergency EM-3454 | No |
| 2020 | Covid-19 Pandemic | Major disaster DR-4520 | Yes |
Flooding shows up most. Flooding and lake levels covers the 2000, 2008 and 2018 floods, the lakes' record highs and flood insurance.
Madison Weather at a Glance
| Snowfall, normal season | 51.8 inches (1991-2020)(NWS) | Every season since 1884 |
|---|---|---|
| Last spring frost (median) | May 1; 1 year in 10 after May 16(NOAA) | Frost dates and depth |
| First fall frost (median) | Oct. 10(NOAA) | Every year since 1940 |
| Lake Mendota ice | 76 days a winter on average, last 10 winters(SCO) | Freeze and thaw since 1855 |
| Lake Mendota record high | 852.74 ft, June 6, 2000(Dane County) | Lake levels |
Winter brings its own house problems: ice dams and window condensation. For outages, see power outages in Madison.
How We Did This
- Tornadoes: NOAA Storm Prediction Center's 1950-2025 tornado file, downloaded 2026-10-09. We kept Wisconsin tornadoes with Dane County (FIPS 025) in any of the file's four county fields.(NOAA SPC) Ratings before Feb. 1, 2007 are on the original Fujita (F) scale; later ones on the Enhanced Fujita (EF) scale. The file lists four counties per tornado, so a long-track tornado that entered Dane as its fifth county would be missed. Column definitions are in SPC's database description.
- Declarations: OpenFEMA's Disaster Declarations Summaries, filtered to Dane County, Wisconsin.(OpenFEMA)
Questions
Has a tornado ever hit Madison?
NOAA's database lists 78 tornadoes in Dane County from 1950 to 2025. The strongest were rated F3 or EF3; none in the county has been rated higher. The CSV on this page has every one with its start and end point.
When is tornado season in Dane County?
June. 29 of the county's 78 recorded tornadoes came in June, 17 in July and 11 in May. They've been recorded from Feb to Oct.
How much snow does Madison get?
The official normal is 51.8 inches a season. Madison snowfall history has every season since 1884-85.
When is the last frost in Madison?
NOAA's median last spring frost at the Madison airport is May 1, with a 1-in-10 chance after May 16.