The biggest feature of Skywarn training is safety, especially if you desire to stand outside in a storm to try to see what is going on. There are several potential hazards to this which could maim or kill you. I have watched storms develop from miles away and have seen the potential danger they can cause many times. Pop up storms from the development of a cumulonimbus are interesting to watch, however one must have a plan to escape before it is upon you.
A tornado is a violently rotating column of air, in association with a deep convective cloud, in direct contact with the earth’s surface. The tornado is not just the visible condensation funnel but rather is the entire circulation of wind that makes up the vortex. It is the tornado’s wind that primarily does damage rather than the rapid pressure change within the tornado. Tornado strength is defined by the damage it produces using the enhanced Fujita damage scale.
| RATING | Wind Estimate |
| EF0 | 65 – 85 mph |
| EF1 | 86 – 110 mph |
| EF2 | 111 – 135 mph |
| EF3 | 136 – 165 mph |
| EF4 | 166 – 200 mph |
| EF5 | 200+ mph |
There has only been one F5 tornado on record in Michigan and it caused an incredible amount of damage. The storm, called the Flint-Beecher Tornado (feature image) was categorized as “Incredible” with wind speeds between 261-318 mph and the storm was the ninth deadliest tornado in United States history.
The storm raged through northern Flint on June 8th, 1953. It devastated houses along a 23-mile-long path that spanned to the town of Lapeer. The powerful twister killed 115 people, injured 844, and caused $19 million in property damage. The storm was so strong, debris from the touch-down path was found up to 200 miles away. Other significant outbreaks are listed below.
- May 12, 1956: The Allen Park F4 Tornado injured 22 people.
- July 4, 1957: The Brighton F4 Tornado caused 2 injuries, and destroyed several homes.
- May 8, 1964: The Mt. Clemens F4 Tornado cut a three-mile-long path north of Mt. Clemens. The storm killed 11 people and damaged 372 houses and buildings.
- April 11 – 12, 1965: The Palm Sunday Outbreak was a severe weather event that spawned 51 tornadoes Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Iowa.
- April 3 – 4, 1974: The Super Outbreak was another extreme weather event that spawned 148 tornadoes throughout Michigan and several other states in the Midwest.
- March 20, 1976: The West Bloomfield F4 Tornado touched down along Halsted Road between 13 and 15 Mile Roads. It killed one person and caused $5 million in property damage.
- April 2, 1977: A tornado touched down in Eaton County. One person died and 44 were injured in the mile-wide storm.
- May 13, 1980: A twister touched down on Kalamazoo’s main street causing five deaths and 79 injuries.
- June 21, 1987: One person was killed and six injured in Oakland County when a tornado touched down in a mobile home park in Novi. The damage exceeding $1.7 million.
- Aug. 14, 1988: A twister touched down near the campus of Michigan State University and left a damage path for 25 miles across rural Ingham County. One person was killed.
- March 27, 1991: Three people were killed in northern Lower Michigan. Fifteen tornadoes caused more than $30 million in damage.
- July 2, 1997: 13 confirmed tornadoes touched down in southeast Michigan. This was the largest single-day tornado outbreak in recorded southeast Michigan history.
When I lived in Hopkins many years ago I watched a storm front come in from my porch when suddenly trees started falling and power lines were ripped from the houses. This was caused by straight line winds, not a tornado. Another storm I saw was in a sheltered entryway at Perrigo in Allegan – the storm dropped baseball sized hail which trashed all the cars in the parking lot. Yet another storm caused the transformers and power lines on M89 in Otsego to spark and transformers to blow out.
These are just a few reasons to be in a sheltered area or in your basement when a storm is moving into your area.
We built our house 23 years ago. It is actually a double wide modular placed on a full basement. The house is strapped to the foundation with metal straps. This is all fine and dandy. If a tornado blows through I expect the main part of the house to be destroyed leaving the ceiling above the basement intact because it is held together with metal beams which are strapped to the basement.
If you don’t have a basement get to the center of your home preferably in a bathroom tub. If you live in a mobile home, leave to find a ditch or other low lying land features.
If you are driving, it is often said to get out of your car immediately and find shelter! Storm chasers will generally be able to out drive the tornadoes (because they position themselves on the back end of the storm). Proper positioning will not always be the case though for the average motorist (especially for those not experienced with tornado chasing).
If the tornado is gaining on you more than you can outpace it, you will have to abandon the car for a sturdy building or find a low-lying area (ditch). Many times the tornado can not be outpaced due to debris in the road, slick roads, and traffic getting in the way. Rarely will you be able to floor your car to 100 mph+ to get out of the way of the tornadoes path.
Here is a good video on tornadoes – the Flint/Beecher tornado is featured around the 20 minute mark.
[kad_youtube url=”https://youtu.be/JTK3fPBIOvs” ]
MV wasn’t the Hudsonville/Standale tornado of April 3, 1956 a F5? I have read and looked at videos of information on this one. I hope we never have one like it.
This is a great post. I really enjoyed all the links you have too. I have lived in Hudsonville since 1977. I have really learned alot about the weather since moving here. I have alot of respect for Mother Nature and what she is capable of. I have seen a tornado come down and go backup. It was north west of me but inline where one of my kids live. I called her and told her to grab the baby & run to the basement. My kids know that if we have tornadoes here again someday & we will they… Read more »
No real warm air is in sight! Get prepared for cool temps and wind and clouds for many more weeks!
Not really!! By weeks, you must mean one week!
https://m.accuweather.com/en/us/grand-rapids-mi/49503/extended-weather-forecast/329374
Seeing temps in the 40’s coming this weekend now possible 50’s Sunday with that big storm just east of is going to keep our temps down a little definitely not seeing any 60’s and no 70’s hopefully in April time to dry the YARDOFBRICKS out the sun is beautiful though…INDY!
I saw a funnel go up my street when I lived in Your Creek Apartments it flipped a semi trailer over at the Best buy on Alpine ave I can’t remember the date it was several years ago several funnels reported that summer day in nothern Kent county …Way cool..INDY!
While it is true that Michigan on average don’t see a lot of tornadoes it should be noted that several have hit the Grand Rapids metro area. I would like to point out that two have hit within 3 miles of where I now live. Both the 1956 and 1965 storms. It has been on the cooler side so far this spring and in both 1956 and 1965 March was cod and the storms happened on one of the first warm days of those springs. But remember the days were not hot just warm to mild. In 1956 the temp… Read more »
Here is a link to the Palm Sunday 1965 storms https://www.weather.gov/grr/1965PalmSundayTornado
Nice read Michael! I’ve always kind of wanted to see a tornado, but from a distance and out in a open field not destroying anything. Of course we have no control over when or where, but it would seem this area is long over due for one. We may not get many in Michigan, but the chance is always there, and ignoring that chance and not being prepared and having a plan would just be ignorant.
thanks – it is nice to see some actually read the posts and comment on them….
I have only seen one tornado it was back in the early 60’s and it was up in Cadillac. We were camping at Lake Mitchell and the tornado touched down just north of town at the fairgrounds. It destroyed a restaurant on 131 and a few of the buildings at the fairgrounds. That is the best way to see a tornado as they generally are on the back side of the storm and you are west of the storm.
Slim
Good map showing all the below average snowfall for Southern Lower Michigan.
“Generally we can say the below normal snowfall area stretches from Muskegon through Lansing to Detroit.”
https://www.mlive.com/weather/2019/03/michigans-snowfall-all-over-the-board-this-winter-from-200-inches-to-20-inches-below-normal.html
When one looks at the snowfall by major locations one gets a little different look’
Here are some specific snow totals so far this winter.
City Snow so far this season Departure from normal
Detroit 30″ 9″ below normal
Ann Arbor 54″ 4″ above normal
Flint 50″ 7″ above normal
Saginaw/Bay City 42″ 4″ above normal
Jackson 40″ 4″ below normal
Kalamazoo 76″ 2″ above normal
Grand Rapids 76″ 5″ above normal
Lansing 37″ 10″ below normal
Muskegon 69″ 19″ below normal
Traverse City 112″ 17″ above normal
Alpena 88″ 14″ above normal
Sault Ste. Marie 142″ 33″ above normal
Houghton Lake 65″ 5″ above normal
Marquette 213″ 39″ above normal
Not sure about the Ann Arbor total seems to be a big difference between there and Detroit and they are what less then 20 miles apart?
Slim
Rock on slim. Far more above normal snowfall totals and if add in northern Mi it is a landslide of above normal vs below normal! Who would have thought!