National Weather Service United States Department of Commerce

Tracking a Couple of Storm Systems Across the Country

Showers, along with a few strong to severe thunderstorms, are expected from the Great Lakes, New England and southward into the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys. In the wake of this system, a stronger storm is expected to track from the Pacific Northwest, Plains and through the Eastern U.S. this weekend. Strong winds, showers and a larger drop in temperatures are expected this weekend into Monday. Read More >

August 2, 2020: Southeast Wisconsin Flash Flooding & Heavy Rain Event

Just before 8 PM CDT on August 2nd, thunderstorms developed along a convergence zone near the lake and given the lack of shear and high precipitable water values around 1.0-1.5 inches, storms stalled over southern Milwaukee County for a few hours. This resulted in a prolonged period of very heavy rainfall and localized flash flooding that swamped vehicles and inundated roadways across southern Milwaukee County.

Portions of the area saw around 3.0 inches of rainfall with pockets of higher amounts approaching 5.0-6.0 inches. However, due to precipitation being 0.5-1.0 inch below average for the week prior, it helped mitigate the flooding impacts from being worse. Nonetheless, two flash flood warnings were issued for portions of southern Milwaukee and northern Racine counties. 

Eventually, around 10:30 PM CDT the stall showers finally began to move south into Racine and Kenosha counties where they were able to see some of the action. These areas to the south saw upwards of 1.0-3.0 inches.

Image
Radar reflectivity loop of the storms that produced flash flooding/heavy rains in southeast WI on August 2, 2020 
nws logo Media use of NWS Web News Stories is encouraged!
Please acknowledge the NWS as the source of any news information accessed from this site.
nws logo