53401 Zip Code Natural Disasters and Weather Extremes
Hot Rankings
The chance of earthquake damage in 53401 Zip Code is about the same as Wisconsin average and is much lower than the national average. The risk of tornado damage in 53401 Zip Code is lower than Wisconsin average and is about the same as the national average.
Earthquake Index, #71
| 53401 Zip Code | 0.01 |
| 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, #1
| 53401 Zip Code | 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, #590
| 53401 Zip Code | 128.14 |
| 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 3,193 other weather extremes events within 50 miles of 53401 Zip Code were recorded from 1950 to 2010. The following is a break down of these events:
| Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count |
| Avalanche: | 0 | Blizzard: | 11 | Cold: | 45 | Dense Fog: | 83 | Drought: | 22 |
| Dust Storm: | 0 | Flood: | 206 | Hail: | 744 | Heat: | 51 | Heavy Snow: | 51 |
| High Surf: | 0 | Hurricane: | 0 | Ice Storm: | 14 | Landslide: | 0 | Strong Wind: | 74 |
| Thunderstorm Winds: | 1,374 | Tropical Storm: | 0 | Wildfire: | 4 | Winter Storm: | 84 | Winter Weather: | 28 |
| Other: | 402 | ||||||||
Volcanos Nearby
No volcano is found in or near 53401 Zip Code.
Historical Earthquake Events
No historical earthquake events that had recorded magnitudes of 3.5 or above found in or near 53401 Zip Code.
No historical earthquake events found in or near 53401 Zip Code.
Historical Tornado Events
A total of 53 historical tornado events that had recorded magnitude of 2 or above found in or near 53401 Zip Code.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Start Lat/Log | End Lat/Log | Length | Width | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage | Crop Damage | Affected County |
| 14.7 | 1959-10-08 | 2 | 42°46'N / 88°04'W | 2.20 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 2 | 25K | 0 | Racine | |
| 17.7 | 1969-06-29 | 2 | 42°50'N / 88°12'W | 42°54'N / 87°57'W | 13.10 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Waukesha |
| 18.0 | 1959-09-26 | 2 | 42°57'N / 87°58'W | 1.50 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 3 | 250K | 0 | Milwaukee | |
| 19.2 | 1976-04-20 | 2 | 42°27'N / 87°50'W | 0.80 Mile | 50 Yards | 0 | 2 | 25K | 0 | Lake | |
| 19.2 | 1996-04-19 | 2 | 42°27'N / 87°50'W | 42°27'N / 87°50'W | 2.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 2 | 6.6M | 0 | Lake |
| Brief Description: The roof was torn off an apartment building. Over 400 homes and businesses sustained damage and 32 received major damage. Five trucks were overturned at a plant. Homes and garages had roof damage. Numerous trees were damaged or blown down. Injuries included a child with a broken leg and a woman cut by glass. | |||||||||||
| 19.3 | 1972-09-28 | 2 | 42°48'N / 88°09'W | 1.00 Mile | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Racine | |
| 19.7 | 1975-08-25 | 2 | 42°59'N / 87°57'W | 0.20 Mile | 20 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Milwaukee | |
| 20.6 | 1966-03-21 | 2 | 42°40'N / 88°19'W | 42°41'N / 88°03'W | 13.30 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Racine |
| 21.1 | 1962-07-22 | 2 | 43°00'N / 87°58'W | 0.10 Mile | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Milwaukee | |
| 22.2 | 2010-07-22 | 2 | 42°51'N / 88°12'W | 42°52'N / 88°10'W | 1.00 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0K | Waukesha |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: An EF2 tornado developed about 1 mile south of Big Bend, 1/8 mile west of of STH 164 between Henneberry Ave. and Kelsey Ave. The tornado partially uprooted trees, broke tree branches, caused corn crop damage and damaged a barn along a 1 mile path that averaged 70 yards in width. The tornado ended about 1.7 miles southeast of Big Bend, 1/3 mile east-northeast of the intersection of Crowbar Dr. and Parker Dr. The EF2 estimated wind speeds of 115 to 120 mph were based on DI 27(TH) DOD4. The exact start location is Lat 42.86466 and Lon -88.20040. The exact end location is Lat 42.86569 and Lon -88.18079. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A stalled frontal boundary combined with a moist and unstable atmosphere and strong wind shear to produce numerous tornadoes and funnel clouds over South Central and Southeast Wisconsin. A series of vorticity maxima moving west to east through the western Great Lakes enhanced isentropic lift, as a strengthening southerly low-level jet interacted with a nearly stationary west to east warm front. | |||||||||||
| 24.4 | 2008-01-07 | 3 | 42°33'N / 88°18'W | 42°36'N / 88°08'W | 9.00 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 15 | 13.7M | 0K | Kenosha |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: This tornado in western Kenosha County was a continuation of the tornado that spun up 2.27 mils NE of Pell Lake in southeastern Walworth County. It crossed into Kenosha County about 0.4 mile north of where CTH U in Walworth County crosses the county line and becomes CTH F in Walworth County. The tornado continued northeast to just east of the intersection of STH 50 and CTH O, crossed STH 83 just north of 51st Street just north of New Munster Creek, passed through the Village of Wheatland, turned more east and crossed 308th Ave. just north of Peterson Creek, and then dissipated near a pond between CTH PH and 41st Street (Town Rd). Fifteen people in the Civil Town of Wheatland sustained minor injuries. Also in the Civil Town of Wheatland, 7 homes were affected, 25 sustained minor damage, 27 had major damage, and 25 were destroyed. In the Civil Town of Brighton, 10 homes were affected, 3 had minor damage, 3 had major damage, and 4 were destroyed. About 160 people were homeless due to residential damage. This tornado traveled over frozen ponds and creeks, as well as snow piles leftover from recent snowmelt. Average path width was about 100 yards. The wind speed was estimated at 150 to 160 mph (DI 2 - FR12, DOD 8). For a couple homes, the visual damage suggested an EF4 rating, however insufficient anchoring allowed these structures to fail at a lower wind speed. Additionally, other nearby damage indicators didn't support an EF4 rating. The specific starting location in Kenosha County was 42.556342,-88.30533, and the ending location was 42.60061,-88.13524. For plotting purposes, here are a couple mid-point locations of this tornadoe's path: crossing of STH 83 - 42.59297, -88.22230, and the crossing of CTH B - 42.59756, -88.15928. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Very rare, mid-winter, severe storms affected parts of south-central and southeast Wisconsin on January 7th - in the form of two tornadoes and scattered, large, hailstones, and downburst winds. The last time a tornado occurred in January in Wisconsin was on the 24th in 1967 in Green and Rock Counties (25-mile track). On January 7th, a low pressure moved northeast through western Wisconsin, allowing a warm front to push through southern Wisconsin. Temperatures rose into the lower to mid 60s over southeast Wisconsin with surface dewpoints peaking in the mid to upper 50s, resulting in moderate amounts of instablity. Strong, veering winds from the surface to the jet stream level generated sufficient wind shear that supported rotating updrafts in scattered supercell thunderstorms over southeast Wisconsin. A supercell thunderstorm, that had spun up a tornado in northeastern Illinois previously, then crossed the state line into south-central Walworth County (southeast of the city of Walworth) where it intesified and eventually spun up a tornado near Pell Lake that traveled into western Kenosha County. Another supercell spun up a tornado over the northern reaches of the city of Kensoha. Other scattered thunderstorms on this day across south-central and southeast Wisconsin dumped large hail up to 3/4 inch in diameter. | |||||||||||
| 25.1 | 1997-05-18 | 2 | 42°25'N / 88°03'W | 42°22'N / 87°54'W | 6.00 Miles | 75 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Lake |
| Brief Description: A tornado touched down on the southeast side of Lindenhurst and damaged trees and the roofs of several homes. The tornado reached F2 intensity near Sand Lake Road and Route 45 where 2 barns were destroyed, two foot diameter oak trees were broken off or uprooted and the roof was taken off a nursery. Signs were blown down along Sand Lake Road and Stearns School Road. A subdivision on the north side of Gurnee had damage to trees, a chimney blown off a house, windows broken, walls damaged, a garage door blown in and a fence blown down. Three quater inch hail also occurred in Lindenhurst. | |||||||||||
| 25.1 | 1957-04-19 | 2 | 42°39'N / 88°18'W | 42°39'N / 88°14'W | 2.70 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 2 | 250K | 0 | Racine |
| 26.0 | 1965-04-11 | 2 | 42°23'N / 88°01'W | 42°22'N / 87°55'W | 4.50 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Lake |
| 26.4 | 1958-10-09 | 2 | 42°24'N / 88°12'W | 42°23'N / 87°52'W | 16.70 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Lake |
| 26.5 | 1977-04-02 | 2 | 43°04'N / 88°03'W | 43°04'N / 88°00'W | 1.30 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Milwaukee |
| 27.6 | 1957-04-19 | 2 | 42°39'N / 88°20'W | 42°39'N / 88°18'W | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Walworth | ||
| 27.9 | 1972-09-28 | 4 | 42°17'N / 87°52'W | 42°22'N / 87°50'W | 5.20 Miles | 220 Yards | 0 | 20 | 2.5M | 0 | Lake |
| 29.1 | 1958-08-07 | 2 | 43°07'N / 88°00'W | 1.00 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 4 | 25K | 0 | Milwaukee | |
| 29.4 | 1977-04-02 | 2 | 43°04'N / 88°13'W | 43°04'N / 88°03'W | 8.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 2 | 2.5M | 0 | Waukesha |
| 29.8 | 1964-09-03 | 2 | 43°07'N / 88°02'W | 0.10 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Milwaukee | |
| 31.2 | 1977-06-05 | 3 | 43°12'N / 88°18'W | 42°55'N / 88°06'W | 21.80 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Waukesha |
| 32.3 | 1972-09-28 | 2 | 42°46'N / 88°25'W | 1.50 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Walworth | |
| 32.6 | 1980-08-04 | 2 | 43°10'N / 88°01'W | 0.10 Mile | 20 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Milwaukee | |
| 33.0 | 1984-04-27 | 4 | 42°59'N / 88°22'W | 43°05'N / 88°12'W | 6.50 Miles | 10 Yards | 1 | 14 | 2.5M | 0 | Waukesha |
| 35.2 | 2010-06-21 | 2 | 42°52'N / 88°30'W | 42°52'N / 88°24'W | 5.00 Miles | 880 Yards | 0 | 15 | 20.6M | 0K | Waukesha |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: An EF2 tornado developed about 1.9 miles west-southwest of the Village of Eagle, roughly 1/2 mile south-southeast of the intersection of STH 59 and CTH S, just west of a horse-riding ranch, and moved east-northeast through the Village and then moved due east before dissipating about 1.2 miles east-southeast of Jericho, just west of Beulah Road near the end of Valley Court Road. Fifteen people sustained minor injuries. One hundred thirty-four homes received minor damage, 67 homes had major damage, and 8 homes were destroyed, mainly in the southern part of the village. Another 75 homes were minimally affected. One business received major damage, while 18 businesses had minor damage. The business that received major damage was a commercial horse-riding ranch/western town at the beginning of the tornado path. Damage was inflicted upon all of the fencing, two trolleys, and 18 tables. One of the biggest buildings on the site was twisted and turned. A donkey was killed, four hayride wagons were lost, and 25 acres of trees were damaged. The owner of the riding ranch saw the tornado and said it looked like the Fourth of July fireworks finale - there were thousands of lightning streaks in the cone. All together, this tornado uprooted or damaged thousands of trees, and at least three dozen vehicles were damaged or totaled. At Old World Wisconsin, an outdoor museum operated by the Wisconsin Historical Society near Eagle, about 2500 tress were damaged at this site alone, and a few buildings sustained minor damage. Overall, Emergency Management officials estimated that residential damage reached $20,577,500, with business damage around $311,500, bringing total private sector damage to about $20,889,000. A few agricultural buildings were damaged, but loss estimates were not available. Public sector structural damage totaled only about $600, while public sector service costs (non-damage) such as debris clean-up, security and public protection, road protective measures, and other miscellaneous expenses were estimated at $101,965. The starting point location was Lat. 42.86785 Lon.-88.50307. The end point location was Lat.42.87100 Lon. -88.40003. The EF-rating was based on DI 2 (FR12) DOD 6 which suggests wind speeds between 125 to 130 mph. On the WSR-88D Doppler radar at the nearby WFO Milwaukee (MKX), a debris-ball appeared near Eagle within a classic hook echo as the parent thunderstorm moved east. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Strong to severe thunderstorms developed across much of south central and southeast Wisconsin during the evening of June 21, 2010. A vigorous upper level disturbance helped to support deep vertical motions in the atmosphere, along with strong deep layer wind shear. This lift acted on a warm and very moist atmosphere, carried into the region on a 40 to 50 knot low-level jet. The result was powerful rotating thunderstorms, with damaging straight line winds, large hail, and in this case, 5 tornadoes. At one point during the height of the event, around 48,000 customers in southeast Wisconsin were without electric power due to downed power lines. However, power-line and power-pole loss estimates were not available and do not show up as damage amounts in any individual event within this severe weather episode. | |||||||||||
| 35.5 | 1959-10-08 | 2 | 42°20'N / 88°14'W | 2.00 Miles | 90 Yards | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Mchenry | |
| 37.2 | 1965-04-11 | 4 | 42°17'N / 88°13'W | 42°17'N / 88°11'W | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Lake | ||
| 37.4 | 1966-03-21 | 2 | 42°36'N / 88°42'W | 42°40'N / 88°19'W | 19.80 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 1 | 2.5M | 0 | Walworth |
| 39.5 | 1963-04-19 | 2 | 42°18'N / 88°18'W | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Mchenry | |||
| 39.9 | 1967-05-18 | 2 | 43°01'N / 88°30'W | 43°03'N / 88°24'W | 4.70 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Waukesha |
| 40.2 | 1980-06-06 | 2 | 42°49'N / 88°34'W | 0.30 Mile | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Walworth | |
| 40.4 | 1967-04-21 | 4 | 42°12'N / 88°12'W | 42°13'N / 88°06'W | 4.50 Miles | 150 Yards | 1 | 97 | 2.5M | 0 | Lake |
| 40.8 | 1958-10-09 | 2 | 42°25'N / 88°43'W | 42°24'N / 88°12'W | 26.20 Miles | 33 Yards | 1 | 0 | 2.5M | 0 | Mchenry |
| 42.1 | 1965-04-11 | 4 | 42°13'N / 88°23'W | 42°17'N / 88°13'W | 9.10 Miles | 400 Yards | 6 | 75 | 0K | 0 | Mchenry |
| 42.2 | 1981-06-15 | 2 | 43°03'N / 88°32'W | 43°05'N / 88°25'W | 5.60 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Waukesha |
| 42.7 | 1955-04-18 | 2 | 42°45'N / 88°40'W | 42°45'N / 88°35'W | 3.30 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Walworth |
| 43.9 | 1966-06-09 | 2 | 42°06'N / 87°56'W | 2.50 Miles | 33 Yards | 1 | 30 | 0K | 0 | Cook | |
| 44.4 | 1967-04-21 | 4 | 42°09'N / 88°16'W | 42°12'N / 88°12'W | 4.30 Miles | 150 Yards | 0 | 3 | 2.5M | 0 | Mchenry |
| 44.9 | 1966-06-09 | 2 | 42°06'N / 88°01'W | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Cook | |||
| 45.1 | 1980-06-05 | 3 | 43°04'N / 88°34'W | 43°03'N / 88°32'W | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Waukesha | ||
| 45.8 | 1975-06-17 | 2 | 42°05'N / 88°00'W | 1.50 Miles | 20 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Cook | |
| 45.9 | 1964-08-22 | 4 | 43°23'N / 87°55'W | 2.20 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 30 | 2.5M | 0 | Ozaukee | |
| 46.2 | 1986-09-28 | 2 | 42°52'N / 88°44'W | 42°55'N / 88°36'W | 9.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 1 | 2.5M | 0 | Jefferson |
| 47.6 | 1977-06-05 | 3 | 43°20'N / 88°26'W | 43°12'N / 88°18'W | 11.10 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Washington |
| 47.9 | 1978-08-15 | 2 | 42°11'N / 88°22'W | 2.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Mchenry | |
| 48.0 | 1972-08-25 | 2 | 42°02'N / 87°51'W | 1.80 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 1 | 2.5M | 0 | Cook | |
| 48.5 | 2008-01-07 | 3 | 42°25'N / 88°42'W | 42°27'N / 88°36'W | 6.00 Miles | 100 Yards | 0 | 1 | 2.0M | 0K | Mchenry |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: A tornado touched down at 330 pm CST about 1.2 miles north of Popular Grove in Boone County and ended at 348 pm about 3.2 miles north northeast of Harvard in McHenry County. The tornado crossed the Boone McHenry County line near Hunter Road, about 2.1 miles west northwest of Chemung. The tornado crossed Hunter Road into McHenry County and continued to track northeast across Ryan Road as an EF0 and caused mainly minor tree damage. It crossed White Oaks Road then it uprooted a hardwood tree and snapped off pine trees at their base along Maxon Road. This damage continued to be EF0 damage with winds estimated to 80 mph. The tornado intensified as it moved toward the town of Lawrence, where it produced the worst damage in McHenry County. Significant damage occurred in the town of Lawrence, particularly at a house that had more than half of its roof ripped off and garage blown down. The tornado then moved across the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad where it blew 12 railroad freight cars of the track. The train was moving at the time the tornado hit it, so as the main engine stopped, the remaining cars on the track continued along it and slammed into the front part of the train. This caused a few more cars to derail, including one containing hazardous materials that caused the evacuation of the town of Lawrence. The damage in Lawrence was rated as EF2 with winds up to 110 mph. As the tornado moved east of Lawrence it once again started to weaken with some tree damage and shingles off of a few houses on the northeast side of town. It then ran along Oak Grove Road for a stretch where it produced EF1 damage with a hardwood tree snapped at its base and knocked over an old, weakly structured barn. The tornado headed across farm fields and headed for Highway 14 where it damaged a metal barn and sheared a few trees. As it crossed Highway 14, it flipped a semi-trailer and injured the driver at a truck stop weigh station. It continued across Oak Grove Road where it lifted. The maximum width of the tornado in McHenry County was around 50 yards. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Severe thunderstorms developed ahead of a strong cold front across northern Illinois during the afternoon hours of January 7th. The storms moved southeast across east central Illinois during the early to mid evening hours. | |||||||||||
| 48.6 | 1970-04-30 | 2 | 42°00'N / 87°54'W | 42°03'N / 87°49'W | 4.90 Miles | 33 Yards | 0 | 9 | 25K | 0 | Cook |
| 48.9 | 1967-04-21 | 4 | 42°17'N / 88°42'W | 42°21'N / 88°26'W | 14.00 Miles | 1200 Yards | 0 | 40 | 25.0M | 0 | Mchenry |
| 49.0 | 1976-03-12 | 2 | 41°56'N / 87°54'W | 42°06'N / 87°42'W | 15.10 Miles | 150 Yards | 2 | 41 | 2.5M | 0 | Cook |
| 49.4 | 1959-10-08 | 2 | 43°12'N / 88°31'W | 1.00 Mile | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Waukesha | |
| 50.0 | 1966-05-23 | 2 | 43°12'N / 88°32'W | 43°15'N / 88°28'W | 4.30 Miles | 50 Yards | 0 | 3 | 250K | 0 | Dodge |
* 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.