Flash Flood, Oakland
- When
- June 18, 11:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
- Where
- Oakland County, Countywide
- Deaths
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Property damage
- $500,000
- Coordinates
- 42.660, -83.386 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flash Flood in Michigan, June 18, 1996
A series of heavy thunderstorms moved across Oakland county during the afternoon on the 18th, producing rainfall amounts of around 3 inches across much of the county. 11 inches was recorded at the National Weather Service Forecast Office at White Lake.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 1
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $500,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS DTX wrote it up.
A series of heavy thunderstorms moved across Oakland county during the afternoon on the 18th, producing rainfall amounts of around 3 inches across much of the county. A 24-hour rainfall of 3.11 inches was recorded at the National Weather Service Forecast Office at White Lake. One man drowned in West Bloomfield Township when he drove his car across a flooded parking lot into a pond, which was obscurred by the flood waters. Many basements and roads were flooded.
The radar
The Detroit radar (KDTX), 8 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 15:57 UTC.
Event by event
1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
The people who died
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood, Oakland | 1996-06-18 | 54 | Male | Vehicle/Towed Trailer | Direct |
What these are
- Flash Flood
- Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Flood in Wisconsin, June 18 to 30, 1996
- Flood in Wisconsin, June 18 to 20, 1996
- Flash Flood in Wisconsin, June 18, 1996
- Tropical Storm in North Carolina, June 18 to 19, 1996
- Flood in Wisconsin, June 18, 1996
- Flash Flood in Wisconsin, June 18, 1996
- Tropical Storm in North Carolina, June 18 to 19, 1996
- Flash Flood in Pennsylvania, June 18, 1996
- Flash Flood in Maryland, June 18 to 19, 1996
- Flash Flood in Wisconsin, June 18, 1996
- Lightning Strike in Oklahoma, June 18, 1996
- Flood in Wisconsin, June 18, 1996
More
Every storm in Michigan in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in Michigan, June 1996
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5551677.