Lake Michigan, 2013

Marine Thunderstorm Winds in Lake Michigan, August 21, 2013

August 21, 2013 · NWS MQT · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

The passage of a cold front through a very warm and unstable air mass generated scattered strong thunderstorms across northern Lake Michigan on the afternoon of the 21st.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
3

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 passage of a cold front through a very warm and unstable air mass generated scattered strong thunderstorms across northern Lake Michigan on the afternoon of the 21st.

What forecasters said that day

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 Marquette, MI wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 21, 6:34 PM EST, 1 hour 26 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 21, 6:34 PM EST, 1 hour 26 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Aug 21, 2:14 PM EST, 5 hours 46 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MARQUETTE MI
314 PM EDT WED AUG 21 2013

MIZ001>007-009>014-084-085-221200-
KEWEENAW-ONTONAGON-NORTHERN HOUGHTON-BARAGA-MARQUETTE-ALGER-LUCE-
GOGEBIC-IRON-DICKINSON-MENOMINEE-DELTA-SOUTHERN SCHOOLCRAFT-
SOUTHERN HOUGHTON-NORTHERN SCHOOLCRAFT-
314 PM EDT WED AUG 21 2013 /214 PM CDT WED AUG 21 2013/

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF WESTERN UPPER
MICHIGAN AND CENTRAL UPPER MICHIGAN.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT

NUMEROUS THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE INTO THIS EVENING...ESPECIALLY
OVER THE SOUTH HALF OF UPPER MICHIGAN. SOME OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS
COULD BECOME SEVERE AND CAUSE DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY

THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE SATURDAY AFTERNOON OVER THE WEST HALF OF
UPPER MICHIGAN AND FOR ALL OF WESTERN AND CENTRAL UPPER
MICHIGAN SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO SUBMIT REPORTS TO THE NATIONAL
WEATHER SERVICE IN MARQUETTE. THE PUBLIC MAY ALSO SUBMIT REPORTS
AT OUR WEBPAGE...FACEBOOK PAGE...OR ON TWITTER.

LSZ162-240>251-263>267-221200-
LAKE SUPERIOR WEST OF A LINE FROM SAXON HARBOR WI TO GRAND
PORTAGE MN BEYOND 5NM-SAXON HARBOR WI TO BLACK RIVER MI-
BLACK RIVER TO ONTONAGON MI-
ONTONAGON TO UPPER ENTRANCE OF PORTAGE CANAL MI-
UPPER ENTRANCE OF PORTAGE CANAL TO EAGLE RIVER MI-
EAGLE RIVER TO MANITOU ISLAND MI-
MANITOU ISLAND TO POINT ISABELLE MI-
POINT ISABELLE TO LOWER ENTRANCE OF PORTAGE CANAL MI-
LOWER ENTRANCE OF PORTAGE CANAL TO HURON ISLANDS MI INCLUDING
KEWEENAW AND HURON BAYS-HURON ISLANDS TO MARQUETTE MI-
MARQUETTE TO MUNISING MI-MUNISING TO GRAND MARAIS MI-
GRAND MARAIS TO WHITEFISH POINT MI-
LAKE SUPERIOR FROM SAXON HARBOR WI TO UPPER ENTRANCE TO PORTAGE
CANAL MI 5NM OFF SHORE TO THE US/CANADIAN BORDER INCLUDING ISLE
ROYALE NATIONAL PARK-
LAKE SUPERIOR FROM UPPER ENTRANCE TO PORTAGE CANAL TO MANITOU
ISLAND MI 5NM OFF SHORE TO THE US/CANADIAN BORDER-
LAKE SUPERIOR WEST OF LINE FROM MANITOU ISLAND TO MARQUETTE MI
BEYOND 5NM FROM SHORE-
LAKE SUPERIOR EAST OF A LINE FROM MANITOU ISLAND TO MARQUETTE MI
AND WEST OF A LINE FROM GRAND MARAIS MI TO THE US/CANADIAN BORDER
BEYOND 5NM FROM SHORE-
LAKE SUPERIOR FROM GRAND MARAIS MI TO WHITEFISH POINT MI 5NM OFF
SHORE TO THE US/CANADIAN BORDER-
314 PM EDT WED AUG 21 2013 /214 PM CDT WED AUG 21 2013/

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EASTERN LAKE
SUPERIOR...CENTRAL LAKE SUPERIOR AND WESTERN LAKE SUPERIOR.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT

EXPECT SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH THIS EVENING. SOME OF THE
THUNDERSTORMS MAY BE STRONG AND CAUSE GUSTY WINDS OVER EASTERN LAKE
SUPERIOR THIS EVENING.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY

THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE ON SATURDAY OVER THE WEST HALF OF LAKE
SUPERIOR AND FOR ALL OF LAKE SUPERIOR SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO SUBMIT REPORTS TO THE NATIONAL
WEATHER SERVICE IN MARQUETTE. THE PUBLIC MAY ALSO SUBMIT REPORTS
AT OUR WEBPAGE...FACEBOOK PAGE...OR ON TWITTER.

LMZ221-248-250-221200-
GREEN BAY NORTH OF LINE FROM CEDAR RIVER MI TO ROCK ISLAND
PASSAGE-SEUL CHOIX POINT TO POINT DETOUR MI-
5NM EAST OF A LINE FROM FAIRPORT MI TO ROCK ISLAND PASSAGE-
314 PM EDT WED AUG 21 2013

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHERN LAKE
MICHIGAN.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT

NUMEROUS THUNDERSTORMS WILL OCCUR THIS EVENING. SOME OF THESE STORMS
MAY BE SEVERE AND CAUSE DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY

THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO SUBMIT REPORTS TO THE NATIONAL
WEATHER SERVICE IN MARQUETTE. THE PUBLIC MAY ALSO SUBMIT REPORTS
AT OUR WEBPAGE...FACEBOOK PAGE...OR ON TWITTER.

07

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Aug 21, 5:26 PM EST, 2 hours 34 minutes before
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Local storm report, Aug 21, 5:31 PM EST, 2 hours 29 minutes before
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Local storm report, Aug 21, 5:41 PM EST, 2 hours 19 minutes before
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Special weather statement, Aug 21, 5:46 PM EST, 2 hours 14 minutes before
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Local storm report, Aug 21, 5:52 PM EST, 2 hours 8 minutes before
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Special weather statement, Aug 21, 5:55 PM EST, 2 hours 5 minutes before
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The radar

The Marquette radar (KMQT), 122 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:58 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 marine thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Marine Thunderstorm Wind, 5nm E of Fairport Mi to Rock Island Passage

When
August 21, 8:00 PM EST to 8:05 PM EST
Where
5nm E of Fairport Mi to Rock Island Passage forecast zone, 2.78 mi WNW of Point Detour
Measured
40 kt (46 mph) measured gust
Reported by
Mesonet
Coordinates
45.620, -86.660

Measured wind gust at the Fairport GLOS station.

Marine Thunderstorm Wind, Green Bay N From Cedar River Mi to Rock Island Passage

When
August 21, 8:00 PM EST to 8:05 PM EST
Where
Green Bay N From Cedar River Mi to Rock Island Passage forecast zone, 2.78 mi WNW of Point Detour
Measured
40 kt (46 mph) measured gust
Reported by
Mesonet
Coordinates
45.620, -86.660

Measured wind gust at the Fairport GLOS station.

Marine Thunderstorm Wind, Seul Choix Point to Rock Island Passage 5nm Offshore to Mid Lake

When
August 21, 8:00 PM EST to 8:05 PM EST
Where
Seul Choix Point to Rock Island Passage 5nm Offshore to Mid Lake forecast zone, 2.78 mi WNW of Point Detour
Measured
40 kt (46 mph) measured gust
Reported by
Mesonet
Coordinates
45.620, -86.660

Measured wind gust at the Fairport GLOS station.

What these are

Marine Thunderstorm Wind
Thunderstorm winds of 34 knots or more over coastal or lake waters.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Lake Michigan in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather history

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: 467155, 467156, 467157.