How Likely Is a Tornado in Sauk County, WI?
Sauk County, WI: what NOAA's tornado record says
Sauk County has recorded 25 tornado touches in NOAA's 76-year database, a rate of roughly one every 3 years - our Elevated band. Put another way: Sauk County sees more tornado activity than 61% of US counties. Within Wisconsin alone, Sauk County ranks 31 of 72 counties for tornado frequency.
Beyond the frequency band: violent history
20 weak and 5 significant tornadoes make up Sauk County's 25-track record - none violent. NOAA has never logged an EF4 or EF5 crossing this county.
The dollar figure Sauk County's rating leads to
Cost nationally: $2,890-$13,280, about $7,645 typical. Wisconsin has no state rebate program confirmed here; FEMA's underlying 75% cost-share exists nationwide, but applying through a state program is what usually makes it real, and none was found for Wisconsin this pass.
What a direct hit isn't required for
66,486 people live in Sauk 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 this number is, and is not
One caveat before relying on Sauk County's number: it is county-wide, and it covers about 832 square miles, so a single touch counts the same as one in a county a fraction of that size. Weaker pre-1990s tornadoes are also documented as undercounted in NOAA's own record. Sauk County has about 66,486 residents.