EF3 tornado in Lincoln County, Wisconsin

The tornado that formed north of Hamburg (Marathon County) at 6:08 pm CDT (1708 CST) moved into Lincoln County at 6:10 pm CDT (1710 CST). The tornado reached EF3 intensity on the north side of Merrill at approximately 6:22 pm, where 22 homes and seven businesses were destroyed. Several homes lost nearly all exterior and some interior walls (DI 2, DOD 7-8). In addition, 22 homes and one business sustained major damage, and 20 home and four businesses sustained minor damage. A 67 year old male was thrown over 200 feet from his bedroom and suffered broken ribs, a ruptured spleen, and a bruised lung. Another person sustained minor injuries. The tornado tore a path over 20 miles long in Lincoln County before dissipating. The maximum width was about six tenths of a mile (1050 yards) wide. The average width was about 400 yards.

Thunderstorms developed along and ahead of a cold front as it encountered moist and unstable air across Wisconsin.

A record number of tornadoes for April struck Wisconsin on April 10. Fifteen twisters affected the state as a strong spring storm moved across the western Great Lakes. In the National Weather Service Green Bay service area of northeast Wisconsin, ten tornadoes were reported, a record single-day outbreak for any month of the year.

In addition to the tornadoes, the lines of thunderstorms that developed produced plenty of straight line wind damage and large hail. Wind gusts, some estimated in the 80 mph to 100 mph range, downed numerous trees, damaged a small building, caused an injury and damage to two homes, toppled an 80-foot tall radio tower, threw a carport two houses away, and caused major damage to two industrial buildings. The largest hail reported was baseball size near Winneconne in Winnebago County.