BARNEVELD, Wis. — Saturday marks 40 years since a massive F-5 tornado decimated the small town of Barneveld, about 35 miles southwest of Madison.

What You Need To Know

  • Saturday marks 40 years since a massive F-5 tornado decimated the small town of Barneveld, about 35 miles southwest of Madison

  • Nine people in the small, close-knit community died in the tornado

  • Hundreds of others were injured

  • Ninety percent of the town was destroyed, according to the National Weather Service

Images of the destruction from June 8, 1984, fill Leland Pollock’s photo album. They’re also etched in his mind.

“That’s quite a feeling, to see your house coming apart,” he said.“That’s quite a feeling, to see your house coming apart,” he said.

Pollock said he knows how miraculous it is that he, his wife and two sons were not injured.

Weather alerts were less advanced back then. The tornado struck in the middle of the night when most people were sleeping.

Luckily, Pollock was awake, heard the storm pick up, and got his family to the lowest, most protected place in the house.

“Get to safety, was your main objective,” he said. “Losing the house or whatever was secondary to trying to get to safety.”

It saved their lives.

Nine people in the small, close-knit community died in the tornado. Hundreds of others were injured. Ninety percent of the town was destroyed, according to the National Weather Service.

“It affects all of our lives, the rest of our lives, because we don’t like to hear tornado sirens and we don’t like high winds around here and we get our share of that,” Pollock said.

Barneveld Village Trustee Mike Peterson is helping lead the effort to upgrade Memorial Park in the center of town, which honors the people who lost their lives.

“It’s part of the history of who we are, but it’s very hard for a lot of people in town to remember that night,” Peterson said.

Upgrades to Memorial Park will include a new memorial plaque, along with new playground equipment, a sports court and splash pad.

“We wanted to make sure that when we did the park, that people that came through town, or moved to town, knew why the park was here from now and going forward,” Peterson said.

As the years pass, Pollock said it’s important to make sure what happened is never forgotten.

“It’s good to remember, especially the ones that left us, and those that helped, and the donations that came in from all over the country,” he said. “There was time to be thankful and [feel] remorse, and everything else at the same time.”

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