EF1 tornado in La Crosse County, Wisconsin

A tornado occurred at 5:45 p.m. CDT in La Crosse County, WI, near Barre Mills and it was surveyed by a National Weather Service meteorologist on Sunday, June 8th. The tornado initially touched down just west of Russian Coulee Road approximately two miles east of Barre Mills (La Crosse County). There the tornado destroyed one metal barn and partially unroofed another. Much of the debris from the first barn was thrown to the north; however, some of its debris was scattered to the east for nearly a half mile up a hill. A family of five heard the tornado and they took cover in a basement. Fortunately no one was injured.

The tornado then proceeded over a hill and moved through another farmstead. It destroyed a barn and unroofed much of the adjacent house. Both soft and hardwood trees were either snapped or uprooted.

The tornado then moved through several wooded areas as it crossed County Road II, Antony Road, County Road II again, and then Highway 162 near Souchek Road.

The path of this tornado was about 6 miles long with an average width of 600 feet. It has an EF1 rating (estimated wind speeds of 90 to 110 mph). Several nearby neighbors saw the tornado as it moved through both farmsteads.

A warm front extending east to west across the Upper Mississippi River Valley was the focus for a significant severe weather event on June 7. A total of four tornadoes were confirmed, while numerous reports of wind damage and large hail were received from law enforcement officials and storm spotters.

On Sunday, June 8, the warm front was lingering across the region, but a cold front was quickly tracking east out of the northern Plains. Showers and storms redeveloped during the day in the vicinity of the warm front, while a line of storms developed out ahead of the cold front, with these tracking across the region Sunday night. The severe weather activity, aside from heavy rain, was not as widespread compared to Saturday, June 7.