Michigan, 2014

Lake-Effect Snow in Michigan, November 17 to 19, 2014

November 17 to 19, 2014 · NWS APX · 5 events in 5 counties and zones

A passing cold front returned a more classic northwest flow to the region, and with plenty of unseasonably cold air in place, heavy lake effect snow returned. Some of the typical snowbelts got pounded in this event, with 10 to 20 inches in much of Antrim, Charlevoix, and Otsego Counties.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 4 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
5

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 APX wrote it up.

A passing cold front returned a more classic northwest flow to the region, and with plenty of unseasonably cold air in place, heavy lake effect snow returned. Some of the typical snowbelts got pounded in this event, with 10 to 20 inches in much of Antrim, Charlevoix, and Otsego Counties. Aloha in Cheboygan County also picked up near a foot of snow.

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 Gaylord, MI wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Nov 17, 6:22 PM EST, 38 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Nov 17, 6:22 PM EST, 38 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Nov 17, 4:11 PM EST, 2 hours 49 minutes before
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In the hours before

Local storm report, Nov 17, 4:01 PM EST, 2 hours 59 minutes before
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The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 lake-effect snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Lake-Effect Snow, Charlevoix

When
November 17, 7:00 PM EST to November 19, 2:00 AM EST
Where
Charlevoix forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter

Lake-Effect Snow, Antrim

When
November 17, 7:00 PM EST to November 18, 9:00 PM EST
Where
Antrim forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
45.007, -85.176 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lake-Effect Snow, Otsego

When
November 17, 7:00 PM EST to November 18, 9:00 PM EST
Where
Otsego forecast zone
Reported by
NWS Employee
Coordinates
45.021, -84.599 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lake-Effect Snow, Cheboygan

When
November 17, 7:00 PM EST to November 19, 2:00 AM EST
Where
Cheboygan forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
45.473, -84.492 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lake-Effect Snow, Montmorency

When
November 17, 7:00 PM EST to November 18, 9:00 PM EST
Where
Montmorency forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
45.028, -84.127 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Lake-Effect Snow
Heavy snow in bands downwind of a large lake as cold air crosses warmer water.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Michigan in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in Michigan, November 2014

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 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 550287, 550288, 550289, 550290, 550291.