What started Thursday night as the prelude to a warm holiday weekend, unexpectedly turned into a wind storm from a large system that moved south along the Lake Michigan shoreline.
Racine County Emergency Management Coordinator David Maack says if the storm had come further inland, it would have likely resulted in several-million-dollars in damage. Over the lake the storm brought four inch hail and wind speeds more than 70-miles-an-hour.
The conditions led to downed power lines and tree branches along with flying debris. Kenosha Fire Chief John Thomson says approximately eight roof fires and a structural fire occurred.
Several people were injured and there was one fatality. A 31-year-old man was killed when a tree fell onto the motorcycle he was riding.
Emergency responders scrambled for hours to cover one problem after another, while tens of thousands of southeast Wisconsin residents suffered power outages.
WRJN
