8 thunderstorm wind, 5 hail, 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 9, 12:25 PM EST, 25 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND RAPIDS MI 125 PM EDT SUN MAY 9 2004 .SHORT TERM... EXPECTING CONVECTION TO INCREASE IN COVERAGE AND INTENSITY THIS AFTERNOON...AND THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER WILL LIKELY BE ISSUING A WATCH SOON. WARM FRONT EXTENDS FROM NEAR SOUTH HAVEN EASTWARD TO NEAR JACKSON. THE FRONT IS LIFTING NORTH...WITH VERY UNSTABLE AIR SOUTH OF THE BOUNDARY. LIFTED INDICIES ARE NOW BETWEEN -4 AND -6 SOUTH OF THE FRONT AND BECOMING MORE UNSTABLE WITH TIME. A MESOSCALE CONVECTIVE VORT IS MOVING NORTHEAST FROM SOUTHERN WISCONSIN TOWARD CENTRAL LOWER MICHIGAN. THIS VORT INTERACTING WITH THE STRONG WARM FRONT IS EXPECT TO INITIATE CONVECTION AS WE PROGRESS THROUGH THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING. STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS GIVEN THE INSTABILITY THAT IS IN PLACE NOW...AND WHAT WILL BE IN PLACE BY EVENING. ISOLATED TORNADOES NOT OUT OF THE QUESTION EITHER GIVEN THE INCREASE IN SHEAR FROM THE CONVECTIVE VORT AND WARM FRONT. WILL CARRY THE GOING FORECAST PRETTY MUCH AS IS...SCATTERED SHOWERS AND STORMS WITH GENERALLY PARTLY SUNNY SKIES AND WARM TEMPS. ZONES ALREADY OUT. && .GRR...WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...FLOOD WARNING IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS EVENING FOR NEWAYGO COUNTY. && DUKE
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND RAPIDS MI 149 PM EDT SUN MAY 9 2004 MIZ037>040-043>046-050>052-056>059-064>067-071>074-101000- ALLEGAN-BARRY-CALHOUN-CLARE-CLINTON-EATON-GRATIOT-INGHAM-IONIA- ISABELLA-JACKSON-KALAMAZOO-KENT-LAKE-MASON-MECOSTA-MONTCALM-MUSKEGON- NEWAYGO-OCEANA-OSCEOLA-OTTAWA-VAN BUREN- 149 PM EDT SUN MAY 9 2004 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHWEST LOWER MICHIGAN. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT THE ENTIRE AREA HAS BEEN PLACED IN A SLIGHT RISK FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT BY THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER. A WARM FRONT LIFTING NORTH THROUGH THE AREA WILL BECOME A FOCUS FOR STORMS...WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR STORMS TO BECOME SEVERE. A COUPLE OF ROUNDS OF THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED...ONE LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING...AND ANOTHER LATE TONIGHT. THE STORMS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING LARGE HAIL TO AROUND ONE INCH IN DIAMETER...WIND GUSTS TO 60 MPH...CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING STRIKES...HEAVY RAIN AND THE POTENTIAL FOR AN ISOLATED TORNADO. THE MAIN THREATS FROM STORMS OVERNIGHT WILL BE HEAVY RAIN AND STRONG DAMAGING WINDS. GIVEN THE AMOUNT OF RAIN ACROSS PORTIONS OF CENTRAL LOWER MICHIGAN...IN EXCESS OF THREE INCHES OVER WEST CENTRAL LOWER MICHIGAN IN THE LAST COUPLE OF DAYS...FLOODING IS STILL A MAJOR CONCERN THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE WEATHER EXISTS FOR ALL OF SOUTHWEST MICHIGAN ON MONDAY AND MONDAY EVENING AS A COLD FRONT APPROACHES FROM THE NORTHWEST. ADDITIONAL HEAVY RAINFALL AND FLOODING WILL BE POSSIBLE AS WELL. MORE SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE TUESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS EXPECTED THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING...AND POTENTIALLY AGAIN OVERNIGHT. MEADE DUKE
The Grand Rapids radar (KGRR), 70 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 17:50 UTC.
8 thunderstorm wind, 5 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
Several trees were blown down five miles west northwest of Charlotte.
Three quarters inch hail was reported by law enforcement in Hastings.
The general public reported that numerous trees were blown down in Paw Paw.
The general public reported three quarters inch diameter hail in Freeport.
Several trees were blown down five miles west of White Cloud.
A trained spotter five miles west of Kalamazoo reported seven eighths inch diameter hail.
Law enforcement in Cedar Springs reported that many trees and wires were blown down.
Twenty to thirty trees were either damaged or blown down by severe thunderstorm wind gusts two miles west of Lakeview.
Several trees were blown down in Scotts, as reported by area law enforcement.
One tree was blown down in Spring Arbor, Brooklyn and Hanover.
Several trees were blown down in Tekonsha, as reported by area law enforcement.
A trained spotter four miles north of Battle Creek reported one and three quarters inch diameter hail.
Law enforcement one mile south of Lakewood Club reported three quarters inch diameter hail.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Michigan in 2004Every state in 2004This day in weather historyWarnings in Michigan, May 2004
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: 5402013, 5401916, 5401925, 5401917, 5401924, 5401918, 5401919, 5401923, 5401920, 5401921, 5401922, 5401914, 5401915.