A west to northwest wind of 10 to 15 knots stirred up waves along the southeast shore of Lake Michigan, resulting in favorable conditions for rip currents to develop. A 57 year old man drowned as a result of being caught in a rip current at the Warren Dunes State park.
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 episode as NWS IWX wrote it up.
A west to northwest wind of 10 to 15 knots stirred up waves along the southeast shore of Lake Michigan, resulting in favorable conditions for rip currents to develop. A 57 year old man drowned as a result of being caught in a rip current at the Warren Dunes State park.
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 Northern Indiana wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 26, 6:35 AM EST, 5 hours 25 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTHERN INDIANA 735 AM EDT SUN JUL 26 2009 .AVIATION /12Z TAFS/... STRATO CU DECK WAS EXPANDING OVER THE WRN GRTLKS REGION THIS MORNING AS CAA CONTS AND A SHRTWV ROTATES AROUND THE UPR LOW CENTERED OVER ERN U.P.. CONTD WITH TEMPO MVFR CIGS AT SBN THIS MORNING AS THIS AREA OF LOW CLOUDS SHOULD CONT TO EXPAND AS DIURNAL HEATING DVLPS. BY LATE MORNING CLOUD BASES SHOULD RISE TO VFR. EXPECT SCT INSTABILITY SHRA WILL DEVELOP THIS AFTN AIDED BY SHRTWV DROPPING SE ACROSS LWR MI. SOME VSBY RESTRICTIONS PSBL IN HEAVIEST PORTION OF THE SHRA BUT ODDS OF THIS OCCURRING AT THE TERMINALS TOO LOW TO MENTION IN TAFS. WITH LOSS OF HEATING EXPECT CLOUDS/SHOWERS WILL DIMINISH RAPIDLY THIS EVE. WINDS SHOULD ALSO DROP OFF QUICKLY AS BL DECOUPLES AND HIGH PRESSURE RIDGE OVER THE PLAINS BUILDS INTO THE OH VALLEY. COMBINATION OF RADIATIONAL COOLING AND WK MOISTURE ADVECTION AS LIGHT WINDS BACK SW SHOULD RESULT IN SOME MVFR VSBY RESTRICTION IN BR TOWARD DAYBREAK. PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 442 AM EDT SUN JUL 26 2009/ SHORT TERM... CLOSED LOW OVER LS THIS MORNING EXPECTED TO MOVE E-NE AND WKN OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS AS ANOTHER SHRTWV CURRENTLY SEEN ON WATER VAPOR MOVG THROUGH SRN PART OF THE NW TERRITORIES DIVES SE INTO BACKSIDE OF LONG WAVE TROF RESULTING IN ANOTHER LOW CLOSING OFF JUST NORTH OF LS BY TUE MORNING. AT THE SFC BROAD AREA OF LOW PRESSURE OVER THE UPR GRTLKS WILL SLOWLY LIFT NE AND WKN AS ANOTHER LOW DROPS SE ACROSS MANITOBA INTO CENTRAL ONTARIO. CYCLONIC FLOW AND THERMAL TROF CROSSING THE AREA TODAY SHOULD RESULT IN CONSIDERABLE CLOUDINESS, GUSTY WINDS DUE TO STEEP LOW LEVEL LAPSE RATES MIXING DOWN STRONGER WINDS ALOFT, AND SCT INSTABILITY SHOWERS IN THE AFTN. BEST CHC OF SHOWERS ACROSS NE PORTION OF CWA... WITH COLDER AIR ALOFT IN THIS AREA AND SHRTWV ROTATING AROUND CLOSED LOW DROPPING INTO SRN MI THIS AFTN. NAM BUFR SOUNDINGS INDICATING EQL AROUND 30KFT THIS AFTN SUGGESTING TSTMS ALSO PSBL, HWVR, MLCAPE IS RATHER SMALL AND SKINNY...MAXING OUT AROUND 500J/KG, SO CONTD TO JUST MENTION SHOWERS IN THE FCST FOR TODAY. TEMPS SHOULD AGAIN BE BELOW NORMAL WITH HIGHS RANGING FROM THE M70S NORTH TO AROUND 80 SOUTH. SFC RIDGE OVER THE SRN PLAINS WILL BUILD EAST INTO THE OH VALLEY TONIGHT PROVIDING FAIR WX TO THE AREA. GRADIENT WILL BE WK BUT PRBLY SUFFICIENT TO PREVENT WINDS FROM GOING CALM MOST AREAS AND WITH SOME LINGERING LOW LEVEL MOISTURE AND WK CYCLONIC FLOW... TEMPS SHOULD ONLY FALL INTO THE U50S/L60S. WAA WILL STRENGTHEN MONDAY AS THE NEXT CDFNT MOVES SE INTO THE UPR MS VALLEY/GRTLKS. MODELS INDICATING SOME LIGHT QPF OVER PORTIONS OF THE AREA APPARENTLY AS A RESULT OF THE WK ISENT LIFT, BUT INSTABILITY/FORCING ARE FORECAST TO BE QUITE WK SO CONTD WITH NO WX FCST WITH HIGHS MIXING OUT TO SEASONABLE READINGS IN THE L-M80S. 00Z MODEL RUNS SUGGEST SOME CONVECTION CAUSED BY APCHG CDFNT/SHRTWV COULD REACH NW PORTION OF CWA LATE MONDAY NIGHT, HWVR, RUN-RUN CONTINUITY HAS BEEN POOR SO OPTED TO LEAVE THIS PD DRY FOR NOW. WITH SW FLOW STAYING UP OVERNIGHT, WARMER MAV MINS PREFERRED FOR MON NGT. LONG TERM... TUESDAY THROUGH SATURDAY...THE MAIN CHALLENGES THIS PERIOD CONCERN THE TIMING AND COVERAGE OF ANY STORMS AS AN UPSTREAM RIDGE PERSISTS. AN UPPER LEVEL TROF WILL AMPLIFY OVER NORTH AMERICA AS SHORT WAVE TROFS MOVE THROUGH THE LONGWAVE PATTERN. THE MAIN TROF WILL BECOME BROADER AS A COLD FRONT MOVES SOUTH TUESDAY NIGHT INTO WEDNESDAY. THE ONGOING TIMING OF THE FRONT WITH STORMS POSSIBLE BEGINNING TUESDAY APPEARS ON TRACK. THERE WAS STILL A LOT OF VARIABILITY AMONG THE GFS AND CANADIAN GEM ENSEMBLES IN HANDLING THE INDIVIDUAL TROFS AND SUBSEQUENT CONVECTION...SO HAVE BEEN HESITANT TO MAKE ANY CHANGES...ESPECIALLY GIVEN THE VERY RECENT HANDLING OF CONVECTION BY THE GFS AND NAM MODELS. THERE IS CONCERN FOR ADDITIONAL ROUNDS OF STORMS OVER AT LEAST THE SOUTHEAST PORTION OF THE AREA...EAST AND SOUTH OF FWA...LATER IN THE WEEK. THE GFS ENSEMBLES HAVE BEEN HINTING AT THE FRONT BECOMING STATIONARY WITH A WAVE THEN MOVING NORTHEAST ALONG THE FRONT. THIS SOLUTION SEEMS VERY PLAUSIBLE AS THE UPSTREAM RIDGE REALLY AMPLIFIES NORTH OF ALASKA INTO THE BEAUFORT SEA CAUSING THE TROF TO RETROGRADE WEST. LOW LEVEL THETA E AIR SHOULD BE ABLE TO SPREAD NORTH OF THE OHIO VALLEY AS THE FRONT SURGES BACK TO THE NORTHEAST. SUBSEQUENT SHIFT/S WILL NEED MONITOR FOR THE POSSIBILITY OF STORMS LATE IN THE WEEK. && .IWX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... IN...NONE. MI...NONE. OH...NONE. LM...NONE. && SHORT TERM...JT LONG TERM...SKIPPER AVIATION...JT
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTHERN INDIANA 521 AM EDT SUN JUL 26 2009 INZ004>009-012>018-020-022>027-032>034-MIZ078>081-OHZ001-002-004-005- 015-016-024-025-270930- ST. JOSEPH IN-ELKHART-LAGRANGE-STEUBEN-NOBLE-DE KALB-STARKE-PULASKI- MARSHALL-FULTON IN-KOSCIUSKO-WHITLEY-ALLEN IN-WHITE-CASS IN-MIAMI- WABASH-HUNTINGTON-WELLS-ADAMS-GRANT-BLACKFORD-JAY-CASS MI- ST. JOSEPH MI-BRANCH-HILLSDALE-WILLIAMS-FULTON OH-DEFIANCE-HENRY- PAULDING-PUTNAM-VAN WERT-ALLEN OH- INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...SOUTH BEND...MISHAWAKA...ELKHART... GOSHEN...LAGRANGE...TOPEKA...ANGOLA...KENDALLVILLE...LIGONIER... AUBURN...GARRETT...KNOX...NORTH JUDSON...WINAMAC...FRANCESVILLE... PLYMOUTH...BREMEN...ROCHESTER...WARSAW...WINONA LAKE... COLUMBIA CITY...SOUTH WHITLEY...FORT WAYNE...MONTICELLO... BROOKSTON...LOGANSPORT...PERU...WABASH...NORTH MANCHESTER... HUNTINGTON...BLUFFTON...OSSIAN...DECATUR...BERNE...MARION... HARTFORD CITY...MONTPELIER...PORTLAND...DOWAGIAC...CASSOPOLIS... STURGIS...THREE RIVERS...COLDWATER...HILLSDALE...BRYAN...WAUSEON... ARCHBOLD...DEFIANCE...NAPOLEON...PAULDING...ANTWERP...OTTAWA... PANDORA...VAN WERT...DELPHOS...LIMA 521 AM EDT SUN JUL 26 2009 /421 AM CDT SUN JUL 26 2009/ THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHWEST OHIO... NORTHERN INDIANA AND SOUTHWEST LOWER MICHIGAN. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY THERE IS A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS TUESDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY. ISOLATED SEVERE STORMS ARE POSSIBLE DURING THIS PERIOD. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED. && STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER DETAILS OR UPDATES...OR CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT WEATHER.GOV/IWX INZ003-LMZ043-046-MIZ077-270930- LA PORTE-NEW BUFFALO MI TO ST JOSEPH MI- MICHIGAN CITY IN TO NEW BUFFALO MI-BERRIEN- INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...MICHIGAN CITY...LA PORTE...NILES... BENTON HARBOR...ST. JOSEPH...BUCHANAN 521 AM EDT SUN JUL 26 2009 /421 AM CDT SUN JUL 26 2009/ THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHERN INDIANA... SOUTHWEST LOWER MICHIGAN AND THE NEARSHORE WATERS OF SOUTHEASTERN LAKE MICHIGAN. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT THERE IS A MODERATE RISK OF RIP CURRENTS ALONG THE BERRIEN COUNTY SHORELINE TODAY. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY THERE IS A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS TUESDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY. ISOLATED SEVERE STORMS ARE POSSIBLE DURING THIS PERIOD. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED. && STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER DETAILS OR UPDATES...OR CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT WEATHER.GOV/IWX
1 rip current. Local standard time, as filed.
Local law enforcement officials reported a 57 year old male drowned offshore of Warren Dunes State Park during the early afternoon hours. The gentleman's wife reported that one minute he was there and the next he was gone. He was later found about 30 yards from shore by rescue personnel. Efforts to revive him were unsuccessful.
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rip Current, Berrien | 2009-07-26 | 57 | Male | In Water | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Michigan in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Michigan, July 2009
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: 175179.