1 thunderstorm wind, as filed by the National Weather Service.
Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.
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 local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Grand Rapids, MI wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 29, 2:50 PM EST, 35 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND RAPIDS MI 350 PM EDT WED MAY 29 2002 THE MAIN FORECAST CONCERN DEALS WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR SEVERE WEATHER THURSDAY AFTERNOON INTO THURSDAY NIGHT. THE MID TO UPPER LEVEL JET STREAK ENTERING THE NW U.S. TRACKS INTO LOWER MICHIGAN THURSDAY EVENING. AS THIS SYSTEM APPROACHES...LOWER MI WILL BE QUITE UNSTABLE FEATURING CAPES OF 1000 TO 2000 J/KG. THE COMBINATION MODERATE CAPE AND INCREASING WIND FIELDS SUGGESTS SEVERE WEATHER IS POSSIBLE. IN ADDITION...THERE IS A BOUNDARY ACROSS ERN MN...TO SOUTHERN WI...TO NEAR CAD...WHICH IS SLIPPING SOUTH. THIS FEATURE COULD PROVIDE A FOCUSING MECHANISM TO CONCENTRATE THE THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY FOR THURSDAY. THUS SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO FORM OUT AHEAD OF THE COLD FRONT THURSDAY AFTERNOON ACROSS ERN WI...TO LOWER MICHIGAN...THE COLD FRONT IS NOT EXPECTED TO PUSH THROUGH UNTIL LATER THURSDAY NIGHT. WITH A LOW WET BULB ZERO AND STRONG WIND FIELDS...HAIL AND HIGH WINDS ARE THE PRIMARY THREAT. IF THE BOUNDARY HOLDS TOGETHER TOMORROW SOME SUPERCELLS POSSIBLE...ESPECIALLY WITH ANY RIGHT MOVING CELLS. THUS TONIGHT...WILL KEEP THE SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS GOING. THE ATMOSPHERE MAINTAINS SOME INSTABILITY. THE WEAK BOUNDARY WILL BE SLIPPING SOUTHWARD INTO SOUTHERN LOWER MICHIGAN. LOWS RANGING FROM MID 50S NORTHWEST TO NEAR 60 SOUTHEAST. A WARM DAY IS IN STORE FOR THURSDAY. UPSTREAM IN THE LOW LEVEL THERMAL RIDGE...MANY AREAS ARE REACHING THE 80S. THIS THERMAL RIDGE DROPS INTO SOUTHERN LOWER MICHIGAN THURSDAY INTO THURSDAY EVENING. WE WILL PROBABLY SEE MORE CLOUDS THE CURRENTLY IN THE UPPER PLAINS...THUS AROUND 80 SHOULD WORK. TEMPERATURES WILL BE A LITTLE COOLER NEAR THE LAKESHORE. SCATTERED STORMS SHOULD FORM...ESPECIALLY IN THE AFTERNOON. A LINE OF STORMS IS EXPECTED TO PUSH THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT. SOME MAY BE SEVERE. THE COLD FRONT MAY HANG UP ACROSS LOWER MI FRIDAY AM...BUT AS WINDS TURN MORE NORTHWEST...COOLER AND DRIER AIR WILL FILTER IN FROM THE NORTH LATER IN THE DAY. DRY WEATHER WILL MOVE IN FOR FRIDAY NIGHT AS WEAK HIGH PRESSURE MOVE IN. MJS EXTENDED FORECAST LOOKS LIKE A FAIRLY DECENT START TO THE WEEKEND WITH HIGH PRESSURE DOMINATING AT THE SURFACE. ON SUNDAY THE HIGH WEAKENS AND MOVES TO THE EAST ALLOWING A WARM FRONT TO MOVE INTO SRN LOWER MI FROM THE CENTRAL PLAINS ON SUNDAY MORNING. THE FRONT AND ASSOCIATED LOW MOVE ACROSS THE STATE ON SUNDAY AND MONDAY BRINGING A CHANCE FOR SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. A HIGH PRESSURE DOMINATES THE SURFACE PATTERN ON TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY. ALOFT THE PICTURE IS OF A MAINLY STATIONARY LONG WAVE PATTERN WITH LONG WAVE TROUGHS OVER EASTERN CANADA AND THE ALEUTIANS ISLAND UPPER RIDGE DOMINATES OVER NORTH AMERICA BUT IS INFLUENCED BY SHORT WAVE ENERGY ROTATING AROUND THE LOW IN EASTERN CANADA. THE ALLEUTIAN LOW BECOMES MORE PROGRESSIVE LATE IN THE PERIOD. MWH .GRR...NONE.
The Grand Rapids radar (KGRR), 80 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:27 UTC.
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
An isolated severe thunderstorm produced a measured wind gust to 62 m.p.h, as reported by a trained spotter. Local area law enforcement reported that several trees were blown down.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Michigan in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Michigan, May 2002
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: 5291574.