Forest County, WI Environment & Hazard Risk
Relatively Low natural hazard risk, led by cold wave. 344 storm events since 1996.
- Expected yearly loss
- $11.8M
- Very Low nationally
- Storm events since 1996
- 344
- Most often thunderstorm wind
- Flood insurance policies
- 10
- 0.1% of homes
- Hurricanes nearby
- 0
- 1 tropical storm or stronger since 2020
Natural hazard risk
FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025
Overall risk
Relatively Low
Score 47.4 of 100
Social vulnerability
Relatively High
Score 71.9 of 100
Community resilience
Relatively Moderate
Score 53.1 of 100
Community resilience runs the other way: a higher rating means a community can recover faster.
Building value exposed: $3.4B · Agriculture value exposed: $6.3M · Risk-adjusted yearly loss: $15.7M
Risk by hazard
- Cold waveRelatively High$9.1M/yr expected annual loss, about 9.1 events a year
- HailRelatively Low$173K/yr expected annual loss, about 1.5 events a year
- LightningRelatively Low$128K/yr expected annual loss, about 28 events a year
- Winter weatherRelatively Low$34.9K/yr expected annual loss, about 17 events a year
- TornadoVery Low$220K/yr expected annual loss, about once every 5 years
- Strong windRelatively Low$130K/yr expected annual loss, about 1.6 events a year
- DroughtVery Low$1,698/yr expected annual loss, about 1.4 events a year
- LandslideVery Low$42/yr expected annual loss, about once every 4 years
- WildfireVery Low$3,540/yr expected annual loss, about once every 44,780 years
- Heat waveVery Low$8,789/yr expected annual loss, about once every 3 years
- Ice stormVery Low$653/yr expected annual loss, about once every 67 years
- EarthquakeVery Low$1,283/yr expected annual loss, about once every 4,545 years
Bars show the national percentile score (0 to 100) for each hazard. Dollar figures are expected annual losses to buildings, people and crops. Not rated here: avalanche, coastal flooding, hurricane, riverine flooding, tsunami, volcanic activity.
Flood risk and insurance
National Flood Insurance Program and FEMA flood maps
Check the flood zone for an address
- Homes with flood insurance
- 10 of 7,495 (0.1%)
- Homes in high-risk flood zones
- 164
- Insured in high-risk zones
- 9 (5%)
- Flood claims since 1978
- 3
- Claims paid since 1978
- $33.3K
Flood claims paid per year
Storm history
Since 1996: 344 events, 0 deaths, $685K in damage
- Thunderstorm Wind73
- Winter Storm66
- Hail59
- Heavy Snow39
- Drought38
- Winter Weather10
- Strong Wind9
- Cold/Wind Chill9
- Dense Fog7
- Extreme Cold/Wind Chill7
Events per year
7 tornadoes on record (EF1 2, EF2 1, F1 1, F2 3).
Most damaging storms
Since 1996, ranked by deaths, injuries and damage
- TornadoEF2, 9.17 mi path, 600 yd wide04/11/2011
Argonne, Forest County
$200K damage
What happened
A tornado developed about 3.5 miles southeast of Argonne and moved northeast into Florence County. The storm uprooted and snapped hundreds of trees, some of which fell on vacation cabins along the storm's path. The hardest hit area was several miles east of Argonne shortly after the tornado developed. A large part of the roof of a house was removed (DI 2, DOD 6). The tornado continued northeast into Florence County at 7:46 pm CDT (1846 CST). The average width of the tornado was 250 yards.
- Flash Flood07/09/2000
South Portion, Forest County
$154K damage
- Thunderstorm Wind65 kt wind06/23/2010
Mole Lake, Forest County
$100K damage
- Hail2.75" hail06/08/2005
Laona, Forest County
$100K damage
Drinking water
5 community water systems serve about 3,934 people. Violations since 2021.
4 systems had health-based violations, such as a contaminant over the legal limit or a missed treatment step. 2 systems had a violation of any kind still open at last report.
- Crandon WaterworksServes 1,958 · Groundwater · Local government1 health violation+3 monitoring or reporting
- Laona Sanitary DistServes 950 · Groundwater · Local government3 health violations+8 monitoring or reporting
- Wabeno Sanitary Dist 1Serves 750 · Groundwater · Local governmentNo health violations
- Blackwell Civilian Consvtn CtrServes 190 · Groundwater · Federal1 health violation
- Nu Roc Health and Rehabilitation CenterServes 86 · Groundwater · Private1 health violation
Largest systems by population served. Monitoring and reporting violations mean required tests or notices were late or missing, not that the water was unsafe.
Pollution sites
0 Superfund sites and 0 toxic release facilities in Forest County
No Superfund sites or toxic release facilities in Forest County in our data.
Superfund sitesToxic release facilitiesEPA inspections and enforcementAir toxics cancer risk4 historic places
Frequently asked questions
- How risky is Forest County for natural disasters?
- FEMA rates Forest County relatively low for overall natural hazard risk, with expected losses of $11.8M a year. The highest-rated hazards are cold wave (relatively high), hail (relatively low), lightning (relatively low).
- What storms are most common in Forest County?
- Since 1996, NOAA recorded 344 storm events affecting Forest County, most often thunderstorm wind (73), winter storm (66), hail (59).
- How many tornadoes have hit Forest County?
- 7 tornadoes have been recorded in Forest County since 1950.
- How many homes in Forest County have flood insurance?
- 10 residential flood insurance policies are in force in Forest County, covering about 0.1% of homes. The program has paid $33.3K on 3 claims here since 1978.
- What is the weather like in Forest County?
- At Laona 6 SW, average highs reach 73°F in Jul and lows fall to 4°F in Jan, with 34.1 inches of rain a year (1991-2020 normals).
Source: FEMA (National Risk Index, NFIP), NOAA (Storm Events, HURDAT2, Climate Normals), EPA · Last updated 08/01/2026 · Storm counts include events in forecast zones that touch the county. This product uses the FEMA OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA.