Spring storm slams southern Wisconsin

PORTAGE (AP) — A clash of weather systems set off storms across Wisconsin late Friday that included a reported tornado, lightning, hail and heavy rains in many areas.

The National Weather Service said trained weather spotters reported the tornado east of Portage in Columbia County, about 30 miles north of Madison, as a storm swept northeastward through the area.

Lori Getter of Wisconsin Emergency Management said four homes were damaged in the Wyocena area just east of Portage.

"So far there are no reports of any injuries," she said, but there were "lots of trees down, power lines down. We're not sure if it's one tornado or a couple tornadoes."

A camper also was tossed through the air, she said.

She said the weather service would be checking the site Saturday to confirm whether it was a tornado and, if so, determine what strength it was.

Scott Reigstad of Alliant Energy said the storms knocked out service to about 4,000 to 5,000 customers in the Portage area at times.

"The village of Wyocena was almost completely out at one point," he said, but most of the power had been restored by 8:30 p.m.

The high winds also caused problems for customers to the northeast, temporarily knocking out service to 4,300 in Waushara County, 2,500 in Sheboygan County and 1,100 in Green Lake County, Reigstad said.

Barry McNulty of We Energies said electricity was cut off for about 11,000 of the utility's customers in southeastern Wisconsin. Much of the damage was from lightning hitting feeder lines that can each serve several thousand customers.

By 9:30 p.m., power had been restored to about 5,000 of them as crews continued repair work, he said.

Lightning struck the steeple of Bethlehem Lutheran Church in the Portage area but caused only minor damage.

It was the second church steeple in Wisconsin to take a lightning strike in two days. A lightning bolt set the steeple of St. Stephen Catholic Church in Milwaukee ablaze during a storm Thursday, leaving only a charred skeleton of the structure.

Earlier Friday, lightning hit a transformer serving two Portage schools, knocking out power to Portage Junior High and forcing the evacuation of that school and Woodridge elementary school. No injuries were reported and there was no fire.

During the storms later Friday, large hail and wind hit Columbia, Juneau, Adams, Sauk and Green Lake counties, Getter said.

Forecasters said the storm front moving eastward through the state would be followed by much colder air and blustery winds.

Mild air sent temperatures Friday into the 70s in parts of southern Wisconsin ahead of the front. The forecast showed highs Saturday would range from the mid 30s in the northwest to the low 50s in the southeast, and highs statewide Sunday and Monday would only reach the 40s amid chances of light rain or snow.