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Merrill Micro Area Natural Disasters and Weather Extremes

 

The chance of earthquake damage in Merrill Area is about the same as Wisconsin average and is much lower than the national average. The risk of tornado damage in Merrill Area is lower than Wisconsin average and is lower than the national average.

Topics:Earthquake IndexVolcano IndexTornado IndexOther Weather Extremes EventsVolcanos NearbyHistorical Earthquake EventsHistorical Tornado Events

Earthquake Index, #900

Merrill Area
0.00
Wisconsin
0.00
U.S.
1.81

The earthquake index value is calculated based on historical earthquake events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the earthquake level in a region. A higher earthquake index value means a higher chance of an earthquake.

Volcano Index, #129

Merrill Area
0.0000
Wisconsin
0.0000
U.S.
0.0023

The volcano index value is calculated based on the currently known volcanoes using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the possibility of a region being affected by a possible volcano eruption. A higher volcano index value means a higher chance of being affected.

Tornado Index, #624

Merrill Area
89.75
Wisconsin
153.98
U.S.
136.45

The tornado index value is calculated based on historical tornado events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the tornado level in a region. A higher tornado index value means a higher chance of tornado events.

Other Weather Extremes Events

A total of 5,374 other weather extremes events within 50 miles of Merrill Area were recorded from 1950 to 2010. The following is a break down of these events:

TypeCountTypeCountTypeCountTypeCountTypeCount
Avalanche:0Blizzard:6Cold:33Dense Fog:18Drought:41
Dust Storm:0Flood:173Hail:1,842Heat:31Heavy Snow:99
High Surf:0Hurricane:0Ice Storm:21Landslide:0Strong Wind:45
Thunderstorm Winds:2,635Tropical Storm:0Wildfire:5Winter Storm:107Winter Weather:6
Other:312 

Volcanos Nearby

No volcano is found in or near Merrill Area.

Historical Earthquake Events

No historical earthquake events that had recorded magnitudes of 3.5 or above found in or near Merrill Area.

No historical earthquake events found in or near Merrill Area.

Historical Tornado Events

A total of 39 historical tornado events that had recorded magnitude of 2 or above found in or near Merrill Area.

Distance (miles)DateMagnitudeStart Lat/LogEnd Lat/LogLengthWidthFatalitiesInjuriesProperty DamageCrop DamageAffected County
10.72002-09-30245°28'N / 89°54'W45°28'N / 89°50'W3.00 Miles250 Yards0075K0Lincoln
 Brief Description: Severe thunderstorms developed in unstable air in the vicinity of an east to west warm front that stretched across northern Wisconsin. These storms produced large hail, wind damage and two tornadoes. Hail to golf ball size covered the ground in the Minocqua area (Oneida co.) and golf ball to tennis ball size hail fell from Arbor Vitae (Vilas co.) to St. Germain (Vilas co.). The most significant wind damage was in southern Oneida county. In the Woodboro area (Oneida co.) a tree that was downed by high winds smashed a pickup truck. A tornado touched down in southeast Florence county. It destroyed a pole barn, a garage that was under construction and 6 to 10 outbuildings in its path. It caused minor damage to a farm home and downed 150 to 250 trees and power lines, causing numerous power outages. The tornado tracked east-northeast across the Menominee river into upper Michigan where it continued to do damage. Another tornado that touched down 8 miles west of Tomahawk (Lincoln co.) did significant damage, uprooting or snapping off thousands of trees along its path. A house in the path of the tornado sustained major structural damage. All outbuildings on the property were destroyed, a camping trailer was thrown 300 feet and a car was thrown into a tree, coming to rest at least 15 feet above the ground. Two barns were also destroyed. The storms knocked out power to around 3,000 customers in the Tomahawk area (Lincoln co.) and about 600 customers in the Rhinelander and Crandon areas.
12.81962-07-24245°12'N / 89°55'W1.00 Mile50 Yards0025K0Lincoln
20.91997-07-16245°07'N / 89°28'W45°04'N / 89°31'W1.40 Miles100 Yards00500K25KLincoln
 Brief Description: Severe thunderstorms affected much of northern, central and east-central Wisconsin during the afternoon and evening of July 16 with tornadoes, downburst winds and large hail. Millions of dollars in damage resulted from the biggest severe weather outbreak to affect the region in years. The storms began to develop early in the afternoon across north-central Wisconsin. Hail the size of baseballs fell in Minocqua (Oneida co.), damaging nearly 200 vehicles. As those storms moved southeast and weakened, a new supercell thunderstorm developed over Lincoln county. This new storm produced wind damage in Tomahawk and softball size hail northeast of Merrill. About 20 minutes later, a tornado developed in southeast Lincoln county and moved southeastward into Marathon county. This tornado, rated F2, was on the ground for more than three miles. It damaged several homes, vehicles and silos, and destroyed numerous barns, sheds and crops. Twenty head of dairy cattle were killed or had to be destroyed. As the tornadic supercell moved southeast, it produced two other weak tornadoes. Total damage to crops and property from five tornadoes, hail and straight-line winds in Marathon county alone topped $10 million. Another supercell thunderstorm produced a downburst swath of damage over three miles wide and 14 miles long from southeast Langlade county, through western Menominee county, into extreme north-central Shawano county. Menominee county was especially hard hit, as tens of thousands of trees were felled in the heavily forested county. Authorities estimated that nearly 25 million board feet of lumber was on the ground; it was hoped that much of it was going to be salvaged. At the height of the storm, winds were estimated to be near 100 mph. As the storm weakened and moved into north-central Shawano county, a 70 mph wind gust was measured near Morgan. Another storm in western Shawano county produced a downburst which downed trees across the city of Wittenberg. Part of a roof was blown off an apartment building in the downtown area, and several houses and businesses sustained damage from the fallen trees. A Wittenberg man was injured by flying glass. Lightning set a house on fire, destroying the second story, in the township of Germania. Another storm struck Waupaca county, producing high winds. A power pole fell and hit a car in New London, injuring the driver. Shortly after 530 pm, a supercell thunderstorm produced numerous wind gusts over 65 mph across the Fox Valley, blowing over many trees, damaging buildings and causing a fatality. A 36 year-old male was killed when a tree fell on his minivan in Oshkosh (Winnebago co.). His young daughter was uninjured in the accident. A wind gust to 82 mph was measured in Appleton (Outagamie co.), and a gust to 67 mph was recorded in Oshkosh. Thunderstorms over Waushara county produced flooding rains, a brief tornado, strong winds and hail. Over five inches of rain fell in only three hours near Hancock, producing some basement and street flooding. A brief tornado also touched down in an open field in Hancock. Numerous trees and powerlines were blown down in Wautoma. A thunderstorm knocked trees and power lines down in Kiel (Calumet/Manitowoc co.), and damaged seven tents at a fair in Cleveland (Manitowoc co.).
23.21997-07-16245°07'N / 89°26'W45°04'N / 89°24'W2.00 Miles100 Yards001.0M3.0MMarathon
 Brief Description: Severe thunderstorms affected much of northern, central and east-central Wisconsin during the afternoon and evening of July 16 with tornadoes, downburst winds and large hail. Millions of dollars in damage resulted from the biggest severe weather outbreak to affect the region in years. The storms began to develop early in the afternoon across north-central Wisconsin. Hail the size of baseballs fell in Minocqua (Oneida co.), damaging nearly 200 vehicles. As those storms moved southeast and weakened, a new supercell thunderstorm developed over Lincoln county. This new storm produced wind damage in Tomahawk and softball size hail northeast of Merrill. About 20 minutes later, a tornado developed in southeast Lincoln county and moved southeastward into Marathon county. This tornado, rated F2, was on the ground for more than three miles. It damaged several homes, vehicles and silos, and destroyed numerous barns, sheds and crops. Twenty head of dairy cattle were killed or had to be destroyed. As the tornadic supercell moved southeast, it produced two other weak tornadoes. Total damage to crops and property from five tornadoes, hail and straight-line winds in Marathon county alone topped $10 million. Another supercell thunderstorm produced a downburst swath of damage over three miles wide and 14 miles long from southeast Langlade county, through western Menominee county, into extreme north-central Shawano county. Menominee county was especially hard hit, as tens of thousands of trees were felled in the heavily forested county. Authorities estimated that nearly 25 million board feet of lumber was on the ground; it was hoped that much of it was going to be salvaged. At the height of the storm, winds were estimated to be near 100 mph. As the storm weakened and moved into north-central Shawano county, a 70 mph wind gust was measured near Morgan. Another storm in western Shawano county produced a downburst which downed trees across the city of Wittenberg. Part of a roof was blown off an apartment building in the downtown area, and several houses and businesses sustained damage from the fallen trees. A Wittenberg man was injured by flying glass. Lightning set a house on fire, destroying the second story, in the township of Germania. Another storm struck Waupaca county, producing high winds. A power pole fell and hit a car in New London, injuring the driver. Shortly after 530 pm, a supercell thunderstorm produced numerous wind gusts over 65 mph across the Fox Valley, blowing over many trees, damaging buildings and causing a fatality. A 36 year-old male was killed when a tree fell on his minivan in Oshkosh (Winnebago co.). His young daughter was uninjured in the accident. A wind gust to 82 mph was measured in Appleton (Outagamie co.), and a gust to 67 mph was recorded in Oshkosh. Thunderstorms over Waushara county produced flooding rains, a brief tornado, strong winds and hail. Over five inches of rain fell in only three hours near Hancock, producing some basement and street flooding. A brief tornado also touched down in an open field in Hancock. Numerous trees and powerlines were blown down in Wautoma. A thunderstorm knocked trees and power lines down in Kiel (Calumet/Manitowoc co.), and damaged seven tents at a fair in Cleveland (Manitowoc co.).
24.11950-06-25445°35'N / 89°35'W45°40'N / 89°20'W13.10 Miles880 Yards212250K0Oneida
24.11971-09-28345°03'N / 89°36'W45°06'N / 89°14'W18.00 Miles200 Yards00250K0Marathon
24.91985-06-08345°48'N / 90°05'W45°34'N / 89°06'W47.00 Miles2640 Yards21625.0M0Oneida
27.51950-06-25245°34'N / 90°18'W45°34'N / 90°07'W8.40 Miles33 Yards00250K0Price
27.81986-07-04245°44'N / 89°38'W1.50 Miles100 Yards00250K0Oneida
28.41974-04-12245°02'N / 90°10'W45°04'N / 90°09'W0025K0Marathon
28.71996-08-07245°04'N / 90°04'W44°54'N / 90°02'W2.50 Miles200 Yards00200K250KMarathon
 Brief Description: A tornado touched down 6.5 miles north of Stratford, tore the top portion of a home off, flattened a garage and snapped off several large trees. The storm moved east-northeast for 2.5 miles, damaging a storage shed and 30 trees on a farm. Dozens of Ginseng shelters were thrown about. The tornado was not on the ground for the entire path.
28.91984-04-27245°12'N / 89°13'W45°16'N / 89°07'W7.50 Miles7 Yards012.5M0Langlade
29.31984-09-24244°53'N / 89°56'W44°57'N / 89°41'W12.00 Miles150 Yards002.5M0Marathon
29.61994-04-26245°24'N / 90°22'W45°34'N / 90°16'W12.00 Miles1200 Yards00500K500KPrice
 Brief Description: Severe thunderstorm winds caused property damage just north of Downing, Dunn County. A tornado skipped along a 12-mile path in Price County from four miles southwest of Ogema to two miles northeast of Prentice. Along its path, the tornado damaged a construction company shed, knocked a garage against a home, rolled a large mobile home onto its top, demolished a cabin trailer and barn, and damaged a farm home.
30.71984-04-27345°40'N / 89°49'W45°54'N / 89°38'W16.00 Miles87 Yards1525.0M0Oneida
31.31971-09-28344°59'N / 90°18'W45°02'N / 90°04'W11.60 Miles300 Yards01250K0Marathon
33.91964-07-06245°13'N / 90°26'W45°10'N / 90°23'W3.30 Miles33 Yards023K0Taylor
34.41968-08-19244°52'N / 90°07'W44°52'N / 89°49'W14.30 Miles67 Yards052.5M0Marathon
34.61991-06-27245°47'N / 89°58'W45°52'N / 89°51'W6.00 Miles400 Yards00250K0Oneida
34.91988-05-08244°44'N / 89°57'W44°58'N / 89°54'W13.00 Miles250 Yards022.5M0Marathon
35.21954-06-20244°53'N / 89°37'W44°48'N / 89°33'W6.10 Miles67 Yards0025K0Marathon
35.21961-09-03244°52'N / 90°01'W2.00 Miles33 Yards003K0Marathon
38.11972-09-20245°40'N / 90°27'W45°45'N / 90°12'W13.10 Miles100 Yards0025K0Price
38.61950-06-25244°55'N / 90°19'W44°58'N / 90°17'W2.70 Miles17 Yards0025K0Marathon
39.81983-07-03244°53'N / 90°20'W44°54'N / 90°11'W6.00 Miles57 Yards00250K0Marathon
41.12007-06-07244°46'N / 89°28'W44°49'N / 89°21'W7.00 Miles225 Yards00343K0KMarathon
 Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: The first tornado of the outbreak formed 9.4 miles east of Mosinee at 4:01 PM CDT. The storm moved across eastern Marathon County where it heavily damaged 2 homes (DI 2, DOD 6), 1 mobile home (DI 4, DOD 9) and 10 barns; caused major damage to 1 home; did minor damage to 6 homes and 1 business; and snapped or uprooted many trees (DI 27, DOD 4). The tornado dissipated near Pike Lake at 4:14 PM CDT. The average path width of the tornado was 150 yards. The tornado was rated EF2 with estimated winds of 115 to 125 mph. EPISODE NARRATIVE: An unseasonably strong upper level storm system and deep surface low pressure (with central pressure as low as 979 mb) interacted with a cold front that moved from west to east across the area during the late afternoon and evening. A moist and unstable airmass ahead of the cold front provided the fuel to generate severe thunderstorms that included five tornadoes, near record-size hail and damaging winds. Thousands of homes sustained damage and about 15,000 customers lost power during the storms, some for almost 3 days as trees blocked roads and slowed repair work to power lines. Four people sustained minor injuries, and total damage from the storms exceeded $60 million. The first tornado of the outbreak moved across eastern Marathon County shortly after 4:00 PM CDT, producing damage to several homes. The tornado was rated EF2. A second thunderstorm produced a weak tornado in Wood County, which was rated EF0. The same storm responsible for this tornado produced softball size hail that damaged thousands of homes, several businesses and hundreds of vehicles. One hailstone that fell in Port Edwards measured 5.50 inches in diameter, making it the second largest hailstone on record in Wisconsin. The same supercell thunderstorm that produced the Marathon County tornado also produced a long-track tornado across northeast Shawano, northwest Menominee, southeast Langlade and northern Oconto counties. This tornado was on the ground for 47 minutes, covering 40.1 miles, and destroyed 14,400 acres of woodlands (timber loss was estimated at $12.5 million) and dozens of buildings along its path. The twister, which was over one-half mile at times, was rated EF3, with peak winds estimated of 150 to 160 mph. The storm responsible for the tornado also produced significant straight-line wind damage as it moved into western Marinette County. The fourth tornado of the outbreak, rated EF1, developed near Cedarville in Marinette Co., which was from the same thunderstorm that produced the long-track tornado. The final tornado of the afternoon and evening touched down near Harmony in Marinette Co. This tornado was rated EF1. Details of the tornadoes, hail, and wind damage can be found in the event narratives of the affected counties.
41.81971-09-28345°06'N / 89°14'W45°10'N / 88°38'W29.50 Miles200 Yards01250K0Langlade
42.51960-11-15244°38'N / 90°23'W44°54'N / 89°45'W36.00 Miles100 Yards0025K0Clark
42.71964-05-08244°42'N / 89°35'W44°48'N / 89°22'W12.30 Miles500 Yards00250K0Marathon
42.71981-06-13245°48'N / 89°10'W45°47'N / 89°07'W00250K0Oneida
43.11950-06-25244°50'N / 90°21'W44°55'N / 90°19'W5.10 Miles17 Yards1025K0Clark
44.61985-06-08345°56'N / 90°28'W45°48'N / 90°05'W21.00 Miles2640 Yards02625.0M0Price
45.31984-04-27345°54'N / 89°38'W46°04'N / 89°30'W13.00 Miles87 Yards0325.0M0Vilas
45.41983-07-03244°51'N / 90°27'W44°53'N / 90°20'W6.00 Miles57 Yards00250K0Clark
46.22002-09-02245°11'N / 90°49'W45°08'N / 90°30'W17.00 Miles75 Yards003.9M0Taylor
 Brief Description: A tornado touched down about a mile northwest of Gilman (Taylor County) and moved southeast into the village a couple minutes later. A few trees and homes were lightly damaged before the tornado hit the Gilman school. The roof was blown off the school gymnasium, where the high school football team had been seeking cover a minute before moving into the hallways and interior rooms. Debris was blown from the school onto the nearby football field and into homes east of Gilman. The tornado kept tracking southeast into the Chequamegon National Forest, producing occasional house damage and knocking down hundreds of trees. The path of the storm crossed Trucker Lane, Winter Sports Road and damaged several homes near Sawyer Avenue as it increased in size and strength. The worst damage was when the top story of a two story house was completely removed along Sawyer Avenue shortly before the tornado dissipated before crossing Highway 64 west of Medford (Taylor County). There were no reports of deaths or injuries. This was the first confirmed tornado in Taylor County since July 30, 1977.
46.52007-06-07245°01'N / 88°58'W45°07'N / 88°46'W13.00 Miles700 Yards002.7M0KMenominee (c)
 Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: The long-track tornado moved into Menominee Co. from Shawano Co. about 7.8 miles west-northwest of Neopit at 4:32 PM CDT. Three thousand acres of trees were snapped or uprooted, many in prime stands of maples, some 150 to 200 years old. The tornado exited Menominee Co. and moved into Langlade Co. at 4:48 PM CDT. The average path width of the tornado in Menominee Co. was 500 yards wide, and damage was rated EF2 (DI 27, DOD 4) in this segment, with estimated winds of 120 to 130 mph. EPISODE NARRATIVE: An unseasonably strong upper level storm system and deep surface low pressure (with central pressure as low as 979 mb) interacted with a cold front that moved from west to east across the area during the late afternoon and evening. A moist and unstable airmass ahead of the cold front provided the fuel to generate severe thunderstorms that included five tornadoes, near record-size hail and damaging winds. Thousands of homes sustained damage and about 15,000 customers lost power during the storms, some for almost 3 days as trees blocked roads and slowed repair work to power lines. Four people sustained minor injuries, and total damage from the storms exceeded $60 million. The first tornado of the outbreak moved across eastern Marathon County shortly after 4:00 PM CDT, producing damage to several homes. The tornado was rated EF2. A second thunderstorm produced a weak tornado in Wood County, which was rated EF0. The same storm responsible for this tornado produced softball size hail that damaged thousands of homes, several businesses and hundreds of vehicles. One hailstone that fell in Port Edwards measured 5.50 inches in diameter, making it the second largest hailstone on record in Wisconsin. The same supercell thunderstorm that produced the Marathon County tornado also produced a long-track tornado across northeast Shawano, northwest Menominee, southeast Langlade and northern Oconto counties. This tornado was on the ground for 47 minutes, covering 40.1 miles, and destroyed 14,400 acres of woodlands (timber loss was estimated at $12.5 million) and dozens of buildings along its path. The twister, which was over one-half mile at times, was rated EF3, with peak winds estimated of 150 to 160 mph. The storm responsible for the tornado also produced significant straight-line wind damage as it moved into western Marinette County. The fourth tornado of the outbreak, rated EF1, developed near Cedarville in Marinette Co., which was from the same thunderstorm that produced the long-track tornado. The final tornado of the afternoon and evening touched down near Harmony in Marinette Co. This tornado was rated EF1. Details of the tornadoes, hail, and wind damage can be found in the event narratives of the affected counties.
47.01974-04-12244°50'N / 89°10'W44°53'N / 88°57'W10.70 Miles150 Yards01250K0Shawano
49.31971-09-28344°50'N / 90°48'W44°59'N / 90°18'W26.40 Miles300 Yards01250K0Clark
49.61958-06-04444°49'N / 90°56'W44°54'N / 90°04'W42.70 Miles880 Yards002.5M0Clark


* The information on this page is based on the global volcano database, the U.S. earthquake database of 1638-1985, and the U.S. Tornado and Weather Extremes database of 1950-2010.


 
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