Michigan, 2000

Heavy Snow in Michigan, December 19, 2000

December 19, 2000 · NWS APX · 5 events in 5 counties and zones

A low pressure system that developed over the southern plains moved northeast into the southern Great Lakes region during the evening of the 18th through the morning of the 19th. This allowed snow to develop across Northern Michigan during the evening of the 18th.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
5

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 APX wrote it up.

A low pressure system that developed over the southern plains moved northeast into the southern Great Lakes region during the evening of the 18th through the morning of the 19th. This allowed snow to develop across Northern Michigan during the evening of the 18th. The snowfall persisted through the late afternoon on the 19th. Easterly winds associated with this storm system combined with very cold air over Lake Huron to enhance snowfall intensities across northeast Lower Michigan. Thunderstorms, which produced snowfall instead of rain, actually developed in the Alpena area during the early morning hours on the 19th. By late afternoon on the 19th, 16-hour snowfall amounts ranged from 8 to 12 inches across northeast Lower Michigan (mainly in locations both east of M-33 and north of M-72). The heaviest snowfall occurred across eastern Alpena county, where accumulations totaled 12 to 15 inches.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Alpena

When
December 19, 2:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
Where
Alpena forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
45.064, -83.460 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Montmorency

When
December 19, 6:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
Where
Montmorency forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
45.028, -84.127 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Oscoda

When
December 19, 6:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
Where
Oscoda forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
44.682, -84.130 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Alcona

When
December 19, 6:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
Where
Alcona forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
44.712, -83.344 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Presque Isle

When
December 19, 9:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
Where
Presque Isle forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
45.398, -83.843 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Heavy Snow
Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Michigan in 2000Every state in 2000This day in weather historyWarnings in Michigan, December 2000

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: 5178133, 5178134, 5178135, 5178136, 5178137.