Late Season Tornado Outbreak October 18 & 19 - Five ConfirmedTornadoes in Southeast Michigan

A strong and potent storm in the Upper Great Lakes drove a cold front through Lower Michigan during the evening and overnight hours on October 18 and 19.    Ahead of the cold front the atmosphere was very warm, moist and unstable.  These conditions combined with the strong storm to produce a widespread tornado and severe weather outbreak across the Great Lakes, Ohio Valley, and Tennessee Valley.  Tornadoes were reported across Northern Lower Michigan, Southwest Lower Michigan, Southeast Lower Michigan as well as Northern Indiana. 

Eleven tornadoes have been confirmed in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula during this outbreak.  Unfortunately, three people were killed in the state, two near Williamston and one near Kalkaska.  Five tornadoes have been confirmed in Southeast Michigan in Shiawassee, Genesee, Tuscola and Huron Counties.  Below is a listing of tornado outbreaks, since 1950, across the state:

*Tornadoes rated on the Enhanced Fujita Scale (EF) after February 1, 2007

While October tornado events in Southeast Michigan are rare, October 18 and 19, 2007 is reminiscent of October 24, 2001.  On that date, 9 tornadoes developed across Michigan including three in Southeast Michigan.  Looking specifically at Southeast Michigan tornado statistics, we find that 7 October tornadoes have occurred between 1950 and 2006, including those 3 back in 2001.

The tornado in Shiawassee County was a continuation of the Williamston/Ingham County Tornado.   The tornado moved from Ingham County into Shiawassee County for about 2 miles, just south of Perry.  In Shiawassee County, the tornado damage was rated as an EF1 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale with winds estimated up to 100 mph.  Damage in Shiawassee County occurred around 10:53 p.m. and included 4 barns and 3 houses.  One house had windows blown out, one farm house had a section of roof taken off, and the third modular home had the entire roof taken off.  The damage path in Shiawassee County was about 100 yards wide.

The tornado in Genesee County occurred around 1:06 a.m. in Thetford Township about 5 miles east of Clio.  The tornado was rated as an EF0 with winds estimated around 80 mph.  The tornado damage was 2 1/2 miles long and 50 yards wide.  It started near Center and Vienna Roads and ended in Buell Lake Park.  Most of the damage was to large trees with many snapped or uprooted.  One home had shingle damage and a barn had a portion of its metal roof peeled off.

The Millington tornado in Tuscola County occurred around 1:16 a.m.  This tornado was rated a strong EF1 with winds estimated around 105 mph.  The tornado damage was 2 miles long and 30 yards wide. The tornado started just west of Barnes and Fulmer Roads just southwest of town, where a modular home was completely destroyed and a framed house lost a section of its roof.  The tornado ended north of Main Street and Caine Road in Millington.

At around 1:45 a.m. two miles west of Deford in Tuscola County, a tornado rated as EF1
with estimated winds around 95 mph caused substantial damage. Its damage path was around
100 yards wide and about 3 miles long. A garage was destroyed, several houses 
sustained roof damage, and numerous trees were snapped off or uprooted.

At around 2:30 a.m. four miles west of Port Hope in Huron County, a tornado rated as EF1
with estimated winds around 100 mph caused substantial damage. Its damage path was around
100 yards wide and about a mile long. Large heavy farm machinery was lifted and displaced,
and a farm shed was moved about 120 feet off of its foundation. Also, the walls of a large
barn were lifted 6 to 8 feet from their foundation.

Below are the Base Reflectivity and Storm Relatively Velocity (SRM) images from near Perry and Millington

The updated preliminary storm reports from yesterday’s severe weather in Southeast Michigan are listed below. 

000
NWUS53 KDTX 200144
LSRDTX

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT...SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DETROIT/PONTIAC MI
945 PM EDT FRI OCT 19 2007

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0842 PM     TSTM WND DMG     2 W BRANT               43.26N 84.27W
10/18/2007                                  SAGINAW            MI   LAW ENFORCEMENT

            CENTRAL DISPATCH RECEIVED A REPORT OF A VERY LARGE TREE
            DOWN ON THE 18000 BLOCK OF BRANT ROAD.

0848 PM     TSTM WND DMG     3 W ST. CHARLES         43.30N 84.21W
10/18/2007                                  SAGINAW            MI   LAW ENFORCEMENT

            CENTRAL DISPATCH RECEIVED A REPORT OF A TREE DOWN ON
            RAUCHOLZ RD.

1005 PM     HAIL                  COLEMAN                 43.76N 84.59W
10/18/2007  E1.00 INCH       MIDLAND            MI   AMATEUR RADIO

1053 PM     TORNADO          2 SSE PERRY             42.79N 84.21W
10/18/2007                            SHIAWASSEE         MI   NWS STORM SURVEY

            DAMAGE SURVEY RATED THE TORNADO AS EF1 WITH ESTIMATED
            WINDS OF 100MPH. THE PATH LENGTH WAS ESTIMATED AT 2 MILES
            LONG WITH A WIDTH OF 100 YARDS WIDE. STRUCTURAL DAMAGE
            OCCURED ON 4 BARNS AND THREE HOUSES.

1132 PM     TSTM WND DMG     4 N FLUSHING            43.12N 83.84W
10/18/2007                                  GENESEE            MI   LAW ENFORCEMENT

            LARGE TREE LIMBS DOWN...MOUNT MORRIS AND SEYMOUR ROAD.

1247 AM     TSTM WND GST     5 W SWARTZ CREEK        42.96N 83.93W
10/19/2007  E65.00 MPH           SHIAWASSEE         MI   AMATEUR RADIO

            A TRAINED SPOTTER ESTIMATED WIND GUSTS AT 60 TO 65 MPH.

0101 AM     HAIL                  1 W CLIO                43.18N 83.76W
10/19/2007  E0.75 INCH       GENESEE            MI   AMATEUR RADIO

0106 AM     TORNADO          5 E CLIO                43.18N 83.64W
10/19/2007                            GENESEE            MI   NWS STORM SURVEY

            DAMAGED SURVEY RATED AS EF0 WITH ESTIMATED WINDS OF UP TO
            80MPH. THE PATH OF THE TORNADO WAS DETERMINED TO BE 2 1/2
            MILES LONG WITH A WIDTH OF 50 YARDS. DAMAGE INCLUDED
            SNAPPED/UPROOTED TREES...ROOF DAMAGE ON MULTIPLE
            STRUCTURES.

0116 AM     TORNADO          1 SSW MILLINGTON        43.27N 83.54W
10/19/2007                             TUSCOLA            MI   NWS STORM SURVEY

            DAMAGE SURVEY RATED TORNADO AS A STRONG EF1 WITH
            ESTIMATED WINDS OF 105 MPH. THE PATH LENGTH IS ESTIMATED
            AT 2 MILES LONG WITH A WIDTH OF 30 YARDS. THE DAMAGE
            INCLUDED THE DEMOLITION OF 2 HOUSES AT BARNES AND FULMER
            ROADS.

0133 AM     TSTM WND DMG     6 W NORTH BRANCH        43.23N 83.31W
10/19/2007                                  LAPEER             MI   EMERGENCY MNGR

            MULTIPLE TREES DOWN

0145 AM     TORNADO          2 W DEFORD              43.51N 83.23W
10/19/2007                            TUSCOLA            MI   LAW ENFORCEMENT

            DAMAGE SURVEY RATED TORNADO AS EF1 WITH ESIMATED WINDS
            AROUND 95 MPH CAUSED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE.  ITS DAMAGE PATH
            WAS AROUND A HALF MILE WIDE AND ABOUT 3 MILES LONG.  A
            TRAILER BLOWN INTO NEARBY POND...A GARAGE WAS DESTROYED
            ... SEVERAL HOUSES SUSTAINED ROOF DAMAGE...AND NUMEROUS
            TREES WERE EITHER SNAPPED OFF...UPROOTED OR DOWNED. 

0230 AM     TORNADO           4 W PORT HOPE        43.93N 82.75W
10/19/2007                             HURON               MI    NWS STORM SURVEY

            DAMAGE SURVEY RATED TORNADO AS EF1 WITH ESTIMATED WINDS
            AROUND 100 MPH CAUSED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE.  ITS DAMAGE PATH
            WAS AROUND 300 FEET WIDE AND ABOUT A MILE LONG.  LARGE HEAVY
            FARM MACHINERY WAS LIFTED AND DISPLACED...A FARM SHED WAS 
            MOVED ABOUT 120 FEET OFF ITS FOUNDATION.  ALSO THE WALLS
            OF A LARGE BARN WERE LIFTED 6 TO 8 FEET FROM THEIR FOUNDATION.    

     
&&
UPDATED TO INCLUDE STORM SURVEY INFORMATION AND ADDITIONAL REPORTS.
$$