Tornadoes, huge hail tear through Wisconsin and Iowa as multi-day severe storm threat continues

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By Meteorologists Briana Waxman, Dakota Smith

(CNN) — Tornadoes and baseball-sized hail tore through parts of Wisconsin and Iowa on Tuesday evening, leaving behind damaged buildings and at least one home destroyed.

The severe weather is part of a multi-day outbreak that began Monday and will continue through the end of the week from the southern Plains to the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes region.

There have been more than two dozen reports of tornadoes from eastern Kansas to southern Minnesota and Wisconsin since Monday night. Destructive hail ranging in size from limes to softballs has also been common, with nearly 100 reports across the same region.

Severe storms are expected to fire up again on Wednesday, with threats for large hail, damaging winds and additional tornadoes stretching from Dallas to Chicago. The week-long stretch of dangerous storms is expected to culminate with another widespread threat in the central US on Friday.

Flooding is also a serious concern in parts of the Great Lakes, where rivers are already running high and some dams in Wisconsin are at risk of failing.

Tornado damage reported

A nasty storm prompted a “particularly dangerous situation” tornado warning Tuesday as a destructive twister struck near Union Center, Wisconsin.

The twister caused “significant damage” to many homes, downed power lines and left some roads impassable, but no injuries or deaths were reported, Juneau County Emergency Management said. The National Weather Service plans to survey the damage on Wednesday to determine the tornado’s strength.

Tornado warnings were issued for millions in Milwaukee and Madison, Wisconsin; Detroit and Ann Arbor, Michigan; and Fayetteville, Arkansas, Tuesday night into early Wednesday. Students and staff at the University of Michigan and University of Arkansas were advised to take shelter.

Powerful severe thunderstorms also moved through Chicago and Grand Rapids, Michigan, where the airport recorded an 80 mph wind gust.

Softball-sized hail fell near Maple Bluff, Wisconsin. Stones this large are capable of seriously injuring people, totaling vehicles and puncturing roofs.

On Monday night, a pair of EF2 tornadoes struck eastern Kansas. One of those in Miami County, Kansas, damaged about 100 structures — roughly 50 to 60 of them “completely destroyed” or significantly damaged — with much of the impact centered around Hillsdale, according to county Undersheriff Matthew Kelly.

Dangerous severe storm threat continues through late week

Wednesday’s severe storms are expected to mostly produce wind damage and large hail, but a few tornadoes are possible.

Areas from near the Texas and Oklahoma border to Iowa and northwest Illinois have the highest chance at seeing severe storms that are more impactful, including an elevated tornado threat, but the Level 2 of 5 risk zone extends as far north and east as the southern Great Lakes and northwest Pennsylvania.

The storm threat is lower and less widespread on Thursday, contained to an area that stretches from the Ohio River Valley to New York.

Friday is likely to be a more dangerous day, especially from Oklahoma to Iowa, where Level 3 out of 5 risk of severe storms in place for more than 7 million people. Strong tornadoes, widespread damaging winds and destructive hail are all on the table.

This system could produce one final burst of severe storms with a threat of strong winds on Saturday in the southern Great Lakes and Ohio Valley. The storm-weary central US will then finally get a multi-day breather starting Sunday because a weather pattern change will usher in cooler temperatures.

Flooding worsens across the Great Lakes

Multiple rounds of rain are exacerbating flooding across parts of Michigan and Wisconsin, where rivers are already running high after one of the wettest starts to spring on record and recent snowmelt.

Major flooding to record river flooding is ongoing or forecast to develop in at least 10 locations along rivers in both states.

In Milwaukee, rapidly rising water stranded multiple drivers near Timmerman Airport, where at least five vehicles became stuck in floodwaters, according to CNN affiliate WTMJ. All occupants were able to get out safely after emergency crews responded. CNN has reached out to local officials for details.

The Chicago area saw significant street flooding Tuesday night as O’Hare International Airport recorded 2.21 inches of rain between 7 p.m. and 1 a.m., most of which fell in a deluge between 10 p.m. and midnight. A flood watch is posted through late Wednesday night for storms that could trigger more flooding in the water-logged Windy City.

More water rescues and evacuation orders were reported Tuesday in Cheboygan, Michigan, where authorities have issued a notice to evacuate low areas along the Cheboygan River due to a levee breach of the Little Black River Watershed.

Firefighters in Suamico, Wisconsin, just north of Green Bay, rescued three people from a flooded home as water levels continued to rise, a Tuesday morning post from the fire department stated.

The Muskegon River near Evart, Michigan, is forecast to hit major flood stage — 14 feet — by Thursday. Subdivisions along the river upstream from the town would see major flooding at that level and it could trigger evacuations, according to the National Weather Service.

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CNN’s Hanna Park contributed to this report.