MOSINEE and WISCONSIN RAPIDS, WI (WSAU) — National Weather Service forecasters have confirmed that three tornadoes touched down Friday evening during a round of severe weather that’s also prompted a disaster declaration in the city of Wisconsin Rapids.
First, an EF-1 tornado was confirmed near Mosinee at 8:25 PM. It was on the ground for nearly ten minutes, uprooting hundreds of trees and took the roof off of several buildings. At least one barn was also damaged.
Another EF-1 tornado was reported near Pelican Lake in Oneida County, no damage was reported with that twister. An EF-0 tornado was also reported near Tripoli.
No tornadoes were reported in south Wood County but the city of Wisconsin Rapids still sustained a considerable amount of damage.
As of Sunday morning officials reported that power was still out on the city’s east side due to damage to an electric transmission line that serves the area. Officials with WR WWLC have enlisted the help of mutual aid from seven other utility companies, and say it could still take days to get power restored to all customers due to the number of poles and service lines that were damaged.
According to a Tweet from WR WWLC over 65 poles are damaged or broken in the city and over 300 branches or trees are in contact with power lines.
Anyone without power that has a critical medical emergency is asked to call 911 immediately. To report a live wire on the ground, call 715-423-6310.
WE Energies is also working to fix impacted gas lines. If you smell gas or believe your gas service was impacted you are asked to call WE Energies at 800-292-7098.
The City’s compost sites were open until dusk on Saturday will be open again from 8 AM to 6 PM on Sunday.
No injuries have been reported from the storm, according to the Wood County Sheriff’s office.
by Michael Leischner (2019, July 21)
