Hail, Ottawa
- When
- May 5, 3:41 PM EST
- Where
- Ottawa County, Grand Haven
- Measured
- 0.88 in hail
- Coordinates
- 43.070, -86.230
Nickel sized hail reported covering the ground.
Hail in Michigan, May 5, 1997
A line of strong to severe thunderstorms developed along a cold front which moved through Michigan's Lower Peninsula during the late afternoon and evening hours of May 5, 1997. Low atmospheric freezing levels supported considerable hail with some of these storms.
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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 22
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 GRR wrote it up.
A line of strong to severe thunderstorms developed along a cold front which moved through Michigan's Lower Peninsula during the late afternoon and evening hours of May 5, 1997. Low atmospheric freezing levels supported considerable hail with some of these storms. Numerous reports of hail were received by the National Weather Service Office in Grand Rapids, including golfball sized hail in Grand Rapids and near Mount Pleasant. No injuries or significant property damage was reported, but crop damage did occur across Ottawa, Kent, Allegan, Lake, and Isabella Counties, although damage estimates were not available.
The radar
The Grand Rapids radar (KGRR), 59 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:38 UTC.
Event by event
22 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
Hail, Ottawa
- When
- May 5, 3:41 PM EST
- Where
- Ottawa County, Zeeland
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 42.820, -86.020
Hail covered the ground.
Hail, Allegan
- When
- May 5, 3:45 PM EST
- Where
- Allegan County, Holland
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 42.780, -86.120
Hail, Ottawa
- When
- May 5, 3:47 PM EST
- Where
- Ottawa County, Grand Haven
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 43.070, -86.230
Hail, Kent
- When
- May 5, 4:02 PM EST
- Where
- Kent County, Byron Center
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 42.820, -85.730
Hail, Kent
- When
- May 5, 4:03 PM EST
- Where
- Kent County, Grand Rapids
- Measured
- 1.5 in hail
- Coordinates
- 42.970, -85.680
Golfball sized hail reported by NWS spotter at the John Ball Park Public Zoo.
Hail, Kent
- When
- May 5, 4:08 PM EST
- Where
- Kent County, Kentwood
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 42.930, -85.750
Hail, Kent
- When
- May 5, 4:12 PM EST
- Where
- Kent County, Byron Center
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 42.820, -85.730
Hail covered the ground.
Hail, Kent
- When
- May 5, 4:12 PM EST
- Where
- Kent County, 4 mi S of Cutlerville
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 42.780, -85.670
Hail, Ottawa
- When
- May 5, 4:15 PM EST
- Where
- Ottawa County, Jenison
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 42.970, -85.680
Hail, Allegan
- When
- May 5, 4:15 PM EST
- Where
- Allegan County, Graafschap
- Measured
- 1 in hail
- Coordinates
- 42.700, -86.100
Hail, Van Buren
- When
- May 5, 4:23 PM EST
- Where
- Van Buren County, Mattawan
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 42.200, -85.780
Hail, Lake
- When
- May 5, 4:56 PM EST
- Where
- Lake County, Baldwin
- Measured
- 0.88 in hail
- Coordinates
- 43.900, -85.850
Hail, Lake
- When
- May 5, 4:58 PM EST
- Where
- Lake County, Idlewild
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 43.900, -85.770
Hail, Barry
- When
- May 5, 5:00 PM EST
- Where
- Barry County, Hickory Corners
- Measured
- 0.88 in hail
- Coordinates
- 42.430, -85.370
Hail, Eaton
- When
- May 5, 5:05 PM EST
- Where
- Eaton County, 3 mi E of Grand Ledge
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 42.750, -84.670
Hail, Branch
- When
- May 5, 5:20 PM EST
- Where
- Branch County, Coldwater
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 41.950, -85.000
Hail, Branch
- When
- May 5, 5:34 PM EST
- Where
- Branch County, Quincy
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 41.930, -84.880
Hail, Ingham
- When
- May 5, 5:39 PM EST
- Where
- Ingham County, Mason
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 42.580, -84.430
Hail, Mecosta
- When
- May 5, 5:54 PM EST
- Where
- Mecosta County, Rodney
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 43.670, -85.320
Hail, Isabella
- When
- May 5, 6:15 PM EST
- Where
- Isabella County, 10 mi W of Mount Pleasant
- Measured
- 1.5 in hail
- Coordinates
- 43.600, -84.970
Hail, Isabella
- When
- May 5, 6:19 PM EST
- Where
- Isabella County, Lake Isabella
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 43.650, -85.050
What these are
- 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
- Strong Wind in Minnesota, May 5, 1997
- High Wind in Iowa, May 5, 1997
- High Wind in Wisconsin, May 5, 1997
- High Wind in Minnesota, May 5, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Colorado, May 5, 1997
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Michigan, May 5, 1997
- Hail in Wisconsin, May 5, 1997
- High Wind in Alaska, May 5, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Pennsylvania, May 5, 1997
- Flood in Hawaii, May 5, 1997
- Hail in Kansas, May 5, 1997
- Hail in Illinois, May 5, 1997
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: 5605951, 5605952, 5605953, 5605954, 5605955, 5605956, 5605957, 5605958, 5605959, 5605960, 5605961, 5605972, 5605962, 5605963, 5605964, 5605965, 5605966, 5605967, 5605968, 5605969, 5605970, 5605971.