Michigan, 2000

Lightning Strikes in Michigan, March 8 to 9, 2000

March 8 to 9, 2000 · NWS APX · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

2 lightning, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 2 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
$170,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
2

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.

The radar

The NCL Michigan radar (KAPX), 69 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 01:01 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.

Lightning, Grand Traverse

When
March 8, 8:00 PM EST to 9:00 PM EST
Where
Grand Traverse County, Countywide
Property damage
$20,000
Reported by
BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates
44.716, -85.552 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lightning sparked a huge explosion at a Northern Michigan Oil Company. The explosion happened at KCS Oil Company in Blair Township. More than 70 fire fighters from seven fire departments rushed to the scene. Fire fighters believe the lightning bolt struck an oil tank holding more than four hundred gallons of residue oil in it. Crews evacuated nearby houses and contained the fire, thereby preventing it from spreading to other tanks.

Lightning, Mackinac

When
March 9, 2:00 AM EST to 4:00 AM EST
Where
Mackinac County, St Ignace
Property damage
$150,000
Reported by
BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates
45.872, -84.762 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Fire fighters in Saint Ignace believe a bolt of lightning caused a fire at the Father Marquette Memorial Museum in Saint Ignace. The fire destroyed the building. The Museum honored Father Marquette, the man who founded Saint Ignace 300 years previous.

What these are

Lightning
A lightning strike that killed, injured or caused damage.

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, March 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: 5134334, 5134335.