National Weather Service confirms storm spawned 8 tornadoes

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The National Weather Service has confirmed a rare December wind storm spawned eight tornadoes across west-central Wisconsin.

The Dec. 15 storm swept across multiple states. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported Sunday that the storm produced three tornadoes rate as EF-2 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, three EF-1 tornadoes and two EF-0 tornadoes.

The EF-2s touched down in Clark County and in Stanley, a city in Chippewa and Clark counties.

An EF-1 touched down in Homer, Minnesota, before ending on a Mississippi River island on the Wisconsin side. The other EF-1s touched down in Levis, along the Trempealeau and Jackson County line and in Clark County.

The EF-0s touched down in Eau Claire County and in the village of Trempealeau.

The Enhanced Fujita Scale is a numerical scale that measures a tornado’s wind speed and destructive power. An EF-2 packs winds ranging from 113 mph to 157 mph. An EF-1 can produce winds between 73 mph and 112 mph. An EF-0 can produce winds ranging from 40 mph to 72 mph, according to the National Weather Service.