High Wind, Keweenaw
- When
- October 16, 1:00 PM EST to October 17, 5:00 AM EST
- Where
- Keweenaw forecast zone
- Measured
- 55 kt (63 mph) estimated gust
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 47.283, -88.212 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High Wind in Michigan, October 16 to 17, 2004
The Upper Peninsula of Michigan was dominated by a chilly north wind between high pressure in Ontario and gathering low pressure in the Lower Great Lakes. A strengthening northwest flow to the west of the path of the low pressure center drew colder air into the Upper Lakes on the 16th.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
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 MQT wrote it up.
The Upper Peninsula of Michigan was dominated by a chilly north wind between high pressure in Ontario and gathering low pressure in the Lower Great Lakes. A strengthening northwest flow to the west of the path of the low pressure center drew colder air into the Upper Lakes on the 16th. Northwest wind gusts reached over 50 mph across the Keweenaw Peninsula by afternoon as the low strengthened over Ontario. An observer at Phoenix reported the strong winds felled trees as large as 2 feet in diameter, knocking down power and telephone lines and temporarily blocking some secondary roads. The powerful winds that gusted up to 61 mph at Stannard Rock lighthouse also whipped up high waves on Lake Superior, and beach erosion was reported from Grand Marais in Alger County to Deer Park in Luce County.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
What these are
- High Wind
- Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
More
Every storm in Michigan in 2004Every state in 2004This day in weather historyWarnings in Michigan, October 2004
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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5426991.