March 8
1943: Grand Rapids plummets to 13 below zero, the coldest ever recorded in March there. This caps a very cold period during the first ten days of the month, where four days had lows at or below zero at Grand Rapids.
2000: Temperatures soar into the upper 70s across Lower Michigan, with some places hitting 80 degrees. The 78 degrees at Grand Rapids is a record high for the date and for so early in the season.
2014: Severe and prolonged cold weather during the winter brought record ice coverage to Lake Michigan by early March. Ice coverage peaked at 93.29 percent on this date, just edging the record of 93.1 percent set in the winter of 1977.
2017: A powerful low-pressure center moving through southern Canada brings winds gusting over 60 mph across Lower Michigan for much of the day. Winds reach 64 mph at Grand Rapids. The winds cause millions of dollars in damage and large scale power outages. Two people are killed when a tree falls on their vehicle while they were driving on M-115 in Clare County.
March 9
1996: Record subzero cold grips Lower Michigan with Grand Rapids and Lansing falling to 7 below zero and Muskegon hitting 6 below.
1998: Arctic air plunges across the Great Lakes after one of the warmest winters on record. The above normal water temperatures contribute to heavy lake effect snow squalls that produce blizzard conditions. From 8 to 12 inches of snow is piled into deep drifts by winds gusting over 40 mph.
March 10
1901: An ice storm across southwest Lower Michigan caused thousands of dollars in damage, and paralyzed telephone, telegraph, news wires and railroads. Streams were swollen as rain fell onto frozen ground, resulting in many washouts and accidents. Similar conditions were also reported for St. Joseph, Grand Haven, Ionia, Coldwater and Kalamazoo.
1993: A snowstorm drops 6 to 8 inches of snow across southwest Lower Michigan. Record daily snowfall includes 6.2 inches at Grand Rapids and 6.4 inches at Muskegon.
March 11
1948: Arctic air prevails with high temperatures in the teens and low temperatures near zero. Muskegon sets a record low of 2 degrees.
March 12
1976: A tornado outbreak struck from Michigan to Alabama. At least four tornadoes hit Michigan with nine people injured. Two tornadoes hit Jackson County, with damage to several homes and businesses. One person was injured in Ottawa County as a tornado moved from north of Holland to north of Hudsonville.
March 13
1990: A spell of record warm weather continues across Lower Michigan with temperatures in the 70s. Lansing hits 74 degrees during a string of four straight days in the 70s.
1993: The Superstorm of 1993 dumps three to four feet of snow across the Appalachians and draws down record cold arctic air across Lower Michigan. High temperatures struggle to reach the lower 20s with gusty winds making it feel even colder.
March 14
1904: A snowstorm drops up to a foot of snow across Lower Michigan with record daily snowfall of 10.5 inches at Grand Rapids, 10 inches at Lansing and 8.0 inches at Muskegon. This snow would contribute to some of the worst floods on record in southwest Lower Michigan when it melts off during the last week of the month.
2019: Thunderstorms with heavy rain combined with snowmelt and frozen ground to bring significant flooding across parts of central Lower Michigan. Newaygo County saw the worst flooding, with more than 150 homes and 9 businesses flooded, as well as the closure of more than 100 roads and the complete washout of more than 30 roads. The flooding continued for several days with damage estimated at nearly 2 million dollars.
Just another above average day to add in the books, what an incredible stretch! Extra bonus is the snow deficit that continues to grow with each snowless day. Incredible!
Thanks for the FACTS Barry !
March update: The first 10 days of March 2020 have been warmer than average with much less snow fall. At Grand Rapids the mean is 38.3° that is good for +6.5° and just a trace of snow fall so far. At Muskegon the mean is 36.9 that is +5.4 with just a trace of snow fall. At Lansing the mean is 39.3 and that is a departure of +8.3 with just a trace of snow fall. Speaking of snow fall the seasonal total so far at Grand Rapids remains at 48.5” At Muskegon it is at 50.3” both much below… Read more »
+8.3?? That’s awesome.
Check out these temps for the end of the week and weekend up in Petoskey! Keep in the the temps at the ski resort will be even colder! Absolutely perfect night time temps for snow making! They will have mid winter like conditions this weekend! Incredible! I am heading up on Friday for another perfect ski weekend! Forget golf!
https://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?lat=45.375&lon=-84.961#.XmkJHMopChA
It should be a great weekend for skiing up in snow country! Temps in the 20’s and 30’s and great snow making conditions! I absolutely love these long winters in MI! Keep it rocking into April!
If you enjoy almost 50 degrees and rain all afternoon in Petoskey tomorrow LOL the man made snow will be in horrible shape this weekend even up north.
Mild March with zero snow… I love long springs!
On average there is just a 38% chance of 1″ and just a 19% chance of 3″ on the ground for today. By Saturday the numbers fall to 30% for one inch and 12% for 3″ so most of the time there is not much snow on the ground in mid March.
Slim
I can’t tell if that’s snow or rain falling outside my window but if it’s snow yes we do average 8 inches of snow in GR in March and the furnace is running so we will call this a cool March Spring day on the other hand it’s light out pass 7pm now so we are getting there ..lol March 11th and still talking about snow and furnace’s running crazzy on that thought have a nice Wednesday ….INDY
What snow march? Who knew?
Another phenomenal day yesterday! Full sun and over 50 degrees again. Just an incredible stretch of sunny, mild and snowless weather to end February and start March. Amazing we haven’t even topped 50 inches of snow yet!
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!