Lake Superior, 2016

Marine High Wind in Lake Superior, February 29, 2016

February 29, 2016 · NWS MQT · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

A strong cold front moving across the region generated storm force winds over portions of Lake Superior on the morning of the 29th.

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
4

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.

A strong cold front moving across the region generated storm force winds over portions of Lake Superior on the morning of the 29th.

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 Feb 28, 6:59 PM EST, 13 hours 1 minute earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 28, 6:59 PM EST, 13 hours 1 minute before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
  <title>Service Notice</title>
  <link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
  <main class="wrap">
    <section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
      <div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
      <h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
      <p id="message1">
        The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
      </p>
      <p id="message2">
        Please try again in a few minutes.
      </p>
      <p class="small" id="detail">
        If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
      </p>
    </section>
  </main>
  <script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>
Hazardous weather outlook, Feb 28, 4:38 PM EST, 15 hours 22 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
  <title>Service Notice</title>
  <link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
  <main class="wrap">
    <section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
      <div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
      <h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
      <p id="message1">
        The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
      </p>
      <p id="message2">
        Please try again in a few minutes.
      </p>
      <p class="small" id="detail">
        If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
      </p>
    </section>
  </main>
  <script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 marine high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Marine High Wind, Manitou Island to Marquette Mi Beyond 5nm From Shore

When
February 29, 8:00 AM EST to 12:30 PM EST
Where
Manitou Island to Marquette Mi Beyond 5nm From Shore forecast zone, 11.76 mi N of Marquette
Measured
54 kt (62 mph) measured gust
Reported by
Mesonet
Coordinates
46.720, -87.410

The observing station at Granite Island measured northwest storm force winds through the period with a peak gust to 62 mph.

Marine High Wind, Manitou Island to Marquette Mi and W of Grand Marais Mi to Us/Canadian Border Beyond 5nm of Shore

When
February 29, 8:00 AM EST to 12:30 PM EST
Where
Manitou Island to Marquette Mi and W of Grand Marais Mi to Us/Canadian Border Beyond 5nm of Shore forecast zone, Stannard Rock Light
Measured
52 kt (60 mph) measured gust
Reported by
C-MAN Station
Coordinates
47.180, -87.230

Northwest storm force winds were measured through the period at Stannard Rock with a peak gust of 60 mph.

Marine High Wind, Munising to Grand Marais Mi

When
February 29, 9:00 AM EST to 12:00 PM EST
Where
Munising to Grand Marais Mi forecast zone, Grand Marais Light
Measured
50 kt (58 mph) measured gust
Reported by
Mesonet
Coordinates
46.680, -85.970

Storm force winds were observed during the period at Grand Marais with a peak gust of 58 mph.

Marine High Wind, Grand Marais to Whitefish Point Mi

When
February 29, 9:00 AM EST to 12:00 PM EST
Where
Grand Marais to Whitefish Point Mi forecast zone, Grand Marais Light
Measured
50 kt (58 mph) measured gust
Reported by
Mesonet
Coordinates
46.680, -85.970

Storm force winds were observed during the period at Grand Marais with a peak gust of 58 mph.

What these are

Marine High Wind
Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 48 knots or more over water.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Lake Superior in 2016Every state in 2016This 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 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 621255, 621256, 621257, 621258.