MONROE - Green County was rocked Wednesday night when two EF-1 tornadoes swept through the region, causing flooding and structural damage.
A report from the National Weather Service listed wind gusts of up to 35 miles per hour in Monroe. However, the National Weather Service conducted a storm survey Thursday and determined that two tornadoes had touched down north of Monroe.
An EF-1 tornado is the second-weakest tornado category on the Enhanced Fujita scale, which rates tornado intensity. EF-1 tornadoes can cause wind speeds from 86 to 110 mph.
Monroe Fire Chief Dan Smits said he assisted the National Weather Service in assessing the storm damage throughout Thursday. The National Weather Service determined that the damage was consistent with two tornadoes of moderate strength in close proximity to each other, Smits said.
"Most of the damage we've seen is in the unincorporated areas north of Monroe," Smits said. "It seems that's where the primary path of the storm was."
Smits said the Monroe Fire Department responded to several reports of damage throughout Monticello, including a residence on Gutzmer Road that sustained considerable damage.
Jim McIntosh, who has lived on Gutzmer Road for 20 years, said he and his family were in Monroe when the storm hit. When they returned home later that night, they found trees splintered, their shed flattened and their RV blown into a nearby pond.
"It's going to be a while before we get that all fixed," McIntosh said.
Debris from the shed - which McIntosh built himself years ago - could be seen scattered hundreds of feet away, apparently carried by exceptionally powerful gusts of wind.
Like several other houses in the area, the McIntosh residence lost much of its roof's shingles, sustained some siding damage and had several windows destroyed.
"Our family will be coming over to help clean up this mess," McIntosh said.
Joan Alton, who lives in the 4000 block of Wisconsin 69 with her husband Roger, said the storm was "terrible."
"I was in the kitchen when it hit," Alton said. "I took my husband and we went into the bathroom, where there aren't any windows. And we just heard this 'boom.'"
A shed and a barn on Alton's property had been completely blown over. Meanwhile, her home sustained significant siding damage and more.
"There's broken glass and water everywhere," Alton said. "We just have to wait for the insurance adjusters to look at it."
Monticello Fire Chief Kevin Komprood said he investigated several damage reports in the Monticello area, including damage to the Faith Engineering building on Wis. 69, a lightning strike at a Monticello building and several damaged residences in the Town of Sylvester.
Komprood said that, based on how trees in the area were twisted and how far debris was scattered, he was confident Monticello had survived a tornado.
Green County Sheriff Mark Rohloff said there were similar damage reports throughout the county. The Sheriff's Department took 27 reports of damage throughout the night, ranging from fallen tree limbs to downed power lines to lightning strikes to flooding.
"The Brodhead Police Department got hit by lightning at some point," Rohloff said. "Their radios were down for about an hour after that."
Rohloff said he was only aware of two reported injuries that resulted from the storm, both from car crashes. In one, a 75-year-old Monroe woman's vehicle was blown into a ditch by a strong gust of wind on Wis. 69, Town of Monroe; in the other, a 17-year-old Monroe boy's vehicle entered a ditch after losing traction on a flooded road on Wis. 81, Town of Jordan.
Both drivers were transported to local hospitals for their injuries.
Monroe Police Chief Fred Kelley said some minor flooding was reported in Monroe but subsided within half an hour. In Monticello, however, flooding continued into Thursday, with a section of Lake Avenue completely submerged and impassable.
Monticello Police Chief Szvon Conway said the flooding in Monticello was "nothing out of the ordinary" although he noted that part of the Monticello Police Department itself was slightly flooded.
Meanwhile, the storm also caused power outages throughout the county. Alliant Energy spokesperson Scott Reigstad said there were about 4,300 reported power outages throughout the county at 10 p.m. Wednesday. However, nearly all of the outages were resolved by Thursday morning after line crews repaired fallen power lines.
Bud Strunz of the Green County Highway Department reported that two power poles had to be replaced on Wis. 69. Localized flooding was also reported on several highways throughout the county, including on Wis. 104 and County E near Brodhead, causing significant shoulder damage.
A report from the National Weather Service listed wind gusts of up to 35 miles per hour in Monroe. However, the National Weather Service conducted a storm survey Thursday and determined that two tornadoes had touched down north of Monroe.
An EF-1 tornado is the second-weakest tornado category on the Enhanced Fujita scale, which rates tornado intensity. EF-1 tornadoes can cause wind speeds from 86 to 110 mph.
Monroe Fire Chief Dan Smits said he assisted the National Weather Service in assessing the storm damage throughout Thursday. The National Weather Service determined that the damage was consistent with two tornadoes of moderate strength in close proximity to each other, Smits said.
"Most of the damage we've seen is in the unincorporated areas north of Monroe," Smits said. "It seems that's where the primary path of the storm was."
Smits said the Monroe Fire Department responded to several reports of damage throughout Monticello, including a residence on Gutzmer Road that sustained considerable damage.
Jim McIntosh, who has lived on Gutzmer Road for 20 years, said he and his family were in Monroe when the storm hit. When they returned home later that night, they found trees splintered, their shed flattened and their RV blown into a nearby pond.
"It's going to be a while before we get that all fixed," McIntosh said.
Debris from the shed - which McIntosh built himself years ago - could be seen scattered hundreds of feet away, apparently carried by exceptionally powerful gusts of wind.
Like several other houses in the area, the McIntosh residence lost much of its roof's shingles, sustained some siding damage and had several windows destroyed.
"Our family will be coming over to help clean up this mess," McIntosh said.
Joan Alton, who lives in the 4000 block of Wisconsin 69 with her husband Roger, said the storm was "terrible."
"I was in the kitchen when it hit," Alton said. "I took my husband and we went into the bathroom, where there aren't any windows. And we just heard this 'boom.'"
A shed and a barn on Alton's property had been completely blown over. Meanwhile, her home sustained significant siding damage and more.
"There's broken glass and water everywhere," Alton said. "We just have to wait for the insurance adjusters to look at it."
Monticello Fire Chief Kevin Komprood said he investigated several damage reports in the Monticello area, including damage to the Faith Engineering building on Wis. 69, a lightning strike at a Monticello building and several damaged residences in the Town of Sylvester.
Komprood said that, based on how trees in the area were twisted and how far debris was scattered, he was confident Monticello had survived a tornado.
Green County Sheriff Mark Rohloff said there were similar damage reports throughout the county. The Sheriff's Department took 27 reports of damage throughout the night, ranging from fallen tree limbs to downed power lines to lightning strikes to flooding.
"The Brodhead Police Department got hit by lightning at some point," Rohloff said. "Their radios were down for about an hour after that."
Rohloff said he was only aware of two reported injuries that resulted from the storm, both from car crashes. In one, a 75-year-old Monroe woman's vehicle was blown into a ditch by a strong gust of wind on Wis. 69, Town of Monroe; in the other, a 17-year-old Monroe boy's vehicle entered a ditch after losing traction on a flooded road on Wis. 81, Town of Jordan.
Both drivers were transported to local hospitals for their injuries.
Monroe Police Chief Fred Kelley said some minor flooding was reported in Monroe but subsided within half an hour. In Monticello, however, flooding continued into Thursday, with a section of Lake Avenue completely submerged and impassable.
Monticello Police Chief Szvon Conway said the flooding in Monticello was "nothing out of the ordinary" although he noted that part of the Monticello Police Department itself was slightly flooded.
Meanwhile, the storm also caused power outages throughout the county. Alliant Energy spokesperson Scott Reigstad said there were about 4,300 reported power outages throughout the county at 10 p.m. Wednesday. However, nearly all of the outages were resolved by Thursday morning after line crews repaired fallen power lines.
Bud Strunz of the Green County Highway Department reported that two power poles had to be replaced on Wis. 69. Localized flooding was also reported on several highways throughout the county, including on Wis. 104 and County E near Brodhead, causing significant shoulder damage.