Damaging Winds in Michigan, December 6 to 7, 1998

The first several days of December were unseasonably warm in southeast Michigan. The warm weather culminated on the 6th, when Detroit reached a high of 69 degrees - the warmest reading ever in Detroit in December. However, a powerful cold front swung through the state late in the evening on the 6th. A thin line of showers and thunderstorms accompanied the front, moving east at about 50 mph. Many of the storms along the line produced wind damage. The result was a December severe weather episode - a rather uncommon event for Michigan. Most of the wind damage occurred immediately behind the line of convection, and the majority of the damage involved the downing of trees, large limbs, and power lines.The majority of the severe weather occurred near or south of Interstate 69. The most notable exception to this was a swath of wind damage across southern Sanilac County, from Marlette to Lexington. Barns and silos were destroyed near Marlette, and a home was deroofed.A more spotty damage path roughly followed I-69 from Davison to Port Huron. A National Weather Service employee estimated 60 mph wind in Davison. Limbs and power lines were downed further east, in Lapeer and Port Huron. Damage was also spotty across Livingston, Oakland, and Macomb Counties. In Oakland County, the National Weather Service office in White Lake measured a 63 mph gust. In Farmington, a home was heavily damaged when it was struck by a large evergreen. A tree fell onto a vehicle on Middlebelt Road in West Bloomfield Township, and the two occupants suffered minor injuries. In Birmingham, the walls of a construction project were blown over, while in Troy, a billboard was shredded by severe winds. The city of Utica in Macomb County was especially hard hit, with many trees and power lines downed.Damage was a little heavier across Washtenaw and Wayne Counties. A barn was destroyed near Manchester. A 64 mph gust was measured at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, while Detroit Metropolitan Airport had a 60 mph gust. In between those two sites, heavy damage occurred in Ypsilanti and at nearby Willow Run Airport. Three apartments suffered extensive roof damage near Ypsilanti, and a home was damaged by a falling tree. At Willow Run Airport, many planes were tossed about, resulting in the destruction of 4 planes, and damage to another half-dozen or so. In Livonia, a metal shed was thrown into a yard two homes down from where it started. In addition, the walls of a drug store under construction were toppled. Nativity scenes were thrown about in Plymouth and Romulus. An historic elm tree lost large limbs in Lincoln Park, a nearby school suffered substantial roof damage, and a dry cleaners under construction was damaged. In Trenton, a trampoline became airborne and flew into nearby tree limbs and power lines, downing them.Damage was isolated in the southernmost tier of counties. A tree fell on a home in Devils Lake, and an uprooted tree came crashing down onto a garage in Monroe.