Tornado Risk in Iron County, WI
Iron County, WI: what NOAA's tornado record says
6 tornado tracks have crossed Iron County since 1958 by NOAA's count, roughly one every 12.7 years - the Minimal band on this site's scale. That is the 18th percentile nationally for tornado frequency. Within Wisconsin alone, Iron County ranks 67 of 72 counties for tornado frequency.
The number that matters more than frequency
No violent (EF4-5) tornado has been recorded in Iron County in NOAA's 76-year database. Of its 6 recorded tracks, 4 were weak (EF0-1) and 2 significant (EF2-3).
Shelter and safe-room economics
Wisconsin does not currently have a confirmed state rebate layered on top of FEMA's 75% Hazard Mitigation cost-share, so a Iron County homeowner should expect the full national range: $2,890-$13,280, $7,645 typical.
Power after the storm, not just shelter during it
6,235 people live in Iron County, and a tornado outbreak's power loss usually reaches far more of Wisconsin than the tracks themselves touch. A portable battery unit is the faster, no-fuel way to bridge that outage.
What Iron County's figure does not tell you
Iron County's figure is county-wide, not address-specific. Iron County covers about 758 square miles, so a single touch here counts the same as a single touch in a county a fraction of that size. NOAA also documents that older records undercount weaker tornadoes from before Doppler radar became standard. Iron County has about 6,235 residents.