Damaging Winds in Michigan, May 18, 1997

Berrien County officials reported winds snapped off pine trees and blew the roof off of a resident's garage and dumped it 300 feet away from the garage.Downed power lines cut power to approximately 1300 customers in Berrien County.

At 1020 PM EDT Sunday, May 18, a wet microburst hit the Americana Estates mobile home park in western Kalamazoo, Michigan. The mobile home park is located one mile northeast of the U.S. Highway 131/Stadium Street (Business I-94) interchange. One injury (a broken wrist) was caused when a microburst approximately 150 yards long and 50 yards wide struck the park. The first damage was noted on Stadium Street at the Burger King and Lee's Restaurant. Two light poles were downed at a Burger King restaurant. The Lee's Restaurant sign was broken with large fragments of 1 to 2 feet driven into the front siding of the restaurant. Some shingles and siding were also blown off. To the northeast, about a dozen mobile homes were pushed off foundations or received major roof damage. Two homes were completely destroyed, one of which was tied down. In the tied down mobile home, the wind ripped off the upper portions of the home, leaving only debris and the flooring. Five people were in the home at the time of the incident, one of whom was a teenage male injured with a broken wrist. The second destroyed trailer was not tied down and the back half of the trailer was broken and twisted onto its side. Debris was blown over 1/4 mile away, where a 2X4 was embedded at a downward angle into the side of a home.

Kalamazoo HAM radio personnel reported six inch diameter trees were blown down in Portage.

Branch County Central Dispatch and Road Commission reported downed trees and power lines in Sherwood Township, in the northwest part of the county. A recreational trailer, parked on the side of the road on Division Street was torn open and the contents were strewn several yards. Some minor damage was done to mobile homes. Several trees and large limbs were downed along Sherwood Road. Extensive damage was done to a nature trail at Sherwood Elementary School.

Several trees and power lines downed in Three Rivers.

St. Joseph Central Dispatch reported several trees and power lines downed in Sturgis.

Hillsdale County officials reported trees and power lines were downed by straight-line thunderstorm winds across Allen, Adams, and Wheatland townships. Four barns were destroyed at 3120 East Bacon Road in Hillsdale and damage was done to the home at the same address. One woman sustained minor injuries when the trailer she was in parked on Meadow Lane tipped over.

Hillsdale County Central Dispatch reported a residence at 13080 South Edon Road was damaged by severe thunderstorm winds. A machine shop, another out-building, and the home received minor damage.