Michigan, 1997

Hail and Damaging Winds in Michigan, May 5, 1997

May 5, 1997 · NWS DTX · 9 events in 5 counties and zones

A cold front tracked across southeast Michigan late on the 5th, triggering scattered thunderstorms. A severe storm in Saginaw county near Hemlock produced golf ball-sized hail and strong winds that flipped a 10-foot snowmobile trailer, tore siding off of a garage, and flattened a 45-foot tree.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$5,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
9

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 cold front tracked across southeast Michigan late on the 5th, triggering scattered thunderstorms. A severe storm in Saginaw county near Hemlock produced golf ball-sized hail and strong winds that flipped a 10-foot snowmobile trailer, tore siding off of a garage, and flattened a 45-foot tree. Trees were also uprooted in Oxford, in Oakland county. Three-quarter inch hail was reported at Grand Blanc in Genesee county, and in Westland, Livonia and Dearborn in Wayne county.

The radar

The Detroit radar (KDTX), 21 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:30 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

7 hail, 2 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Oakland

When
May 5, 6:30 PM EST
Where
Oakland County, Oxford
Measured
50 kt (58 mph)
Coordinates
42.820, -83.270

Hail, Saginaw

When
May 5, 7:20 PM EST
Where
Saginaw County, Hemlock
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
43.420, -84.230

Thunderstorm Wind, Saginaw

When
May 5, 7:30 PM EST
Where
Saginaw County, Hemlock
Measured
60 kt (69 mph)
Property damage
$5,000
Coordinates
43.420, -84.230

Hail, Saginaw

When
May 5, 7:33 PM EST
Where
Saginaw County, Merrill
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
43.400, -84.330

Hail, Genesee

When
May 5, 8:50 PM EST
Where
Genesee County, Grand Blanc
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
42.920, -83.620

Hail, Washtenaw

When
May 5, 10:32 PM EST
Where
Washtenaw County, Dexter
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
42.330, -83.870

Hail, Wayne

When
May 5, 10:52 PM EST
Where
Wayne County, Westland
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
42.320, -83.300

Hail, Wayne

When
May 5, 10:54 PM EST
Where
Wayne County, Livonia
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
42.380, -83.370

Hail, Wayne

When
May 5, 11:05 PM EST
Where
Wayne County, Dearborn
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
42.320, -83.250

What these are

Thunderstorm Wind
Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
Hail
Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Michigan in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Michigan, May 1997

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: 5600103, 5600105, 5600104, 5600106, 5600207, 5600208, 5600209, 5600210, 5600211.