A low pressure system moving through the Lower Great Lakes caused periods of snow and lake enhanced snow from the 16th into the 18th across much of Upper Michigan.
Every event with a place to put it; 9 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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 MQT wrote it up.
A low pressure system moving through the Lower Great Lakes caused periods of snow and lake enhanced snow from the 16th into the 18th across much of Upper Michigan.
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 Dec 16, 6:28 PM EST, 2 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Marquette MI
628 PM EST Fri Dec 16 2016
.SHORT TERM...(This evening through Saturday)
Issued at 418 PM EST FRI DEC 16 2016
Concerns in short term focus on system developing over the
central/southern Rockies and WSW headlines attributed to it over
our area tonight into Saturday night.
Models show system tracking through southern/central Plains into Mid-
MS Valley tonight and then lifting into Ohio Valley/Lower Great
Lakes region on Saturday. Steadier snow ahead of this system will be
moving in later this evening with the potential for moderate to
possibly briefly heavy synoptic snow late tonight into early Sat.
Generally model consensus for synoptic QPF through the event tonight
into Saturday is around .3 inch...and with a deep DGZ depicted on
model soundings from sfc to near 800 mb equating to good snow growth
and high SLRs of 20:1 or greater would expect most of the CWA to see
advisory amounts from this system generally in the 4-7 inch range.
Onset of onshore NNE winds behind the system beginning later this
evening in the west and overnight into the north central counties
along with lingering synoptic lift from system as noted from deep
layer q-vector convergence will likely provide for some lake
enhancement to boost snow totals tonight into Saturday into the
warning category for Gogebic-Ontonagon and western Marquette-Baraga
counties. The favorable snow growth and enhancement potential should
lead to snow totals reaching a foot or more over the higher terrain
areas, and this along with gusty winds to 30-35 mph contributing to
considerable blowing snow will warrant a Winter Storm Warning over
these counties later tonight into Saturday night.
.LONG TERM...(Saturday night through Friday)
Issued at 342 PM EST FRI DEC 16 2016
Moderate lake effect snow Saturday night, then one more quick shot
of arctic air for Sunday before conditions moderate back to
seasonable levels next week.
Saturday night: Deep layer moisture and forcing associated with the
approaching system today will depart the region Saturday night as a
mid-level trough shifts eastward across the region. Precip will
transition to pure LES across Upper MI during this time as H8 temps
fall to -27C across western Lake Superior to -22C over eastern Lake
Superior by Sunday morning. While inversion heights of less than
6kft may somewhat inhibit LES growth, nearly the entire convective
cloud depth will have unidirectional north winds and reside within
the DGZ before colder air arrives overnight. High-ratio LES may fall
at a decent rate within any snow band Saturday evening into the
overnight hours, especially across the far western CWA and north
central CWA. For this reason, have opted to extend headlines through
Saturday night for most counties bordering Lake Superior.
Sunday: Low-level winds will quickly back with the approach of a
weak surface ridge by late in the afternoon. Though a dominate LES
band may form over eastern Lake Superior while lifting northward
during this time, the continuous backing of the winds will result in
only a brief 1 to 3hr period of any heavier snowfall east of
Munising. The same will be true across the Keweenaw Peninsula,
especially in the afternoon. All LES should be confined to Lake
Superior by the evening hours.
Sunday night: Quite a challenging temp forecast is in store during
this time. All signs point to the potential of a very cold night
given the passing surface ridge and fresh snow pack. However, WAA
will commence across at least the west half by the overnight hours.
Moreover, some mid to high level clouds may begin to filter across
the CWA ahead of an approaching clipper system. Expectation is that
temps will fall quickly in the evening hours, then gradually rise
overnight for at least the west half. Would not be surprised to see
some isolated -20F or lower values for the typically colder
locations interior central and maybe interior east. As for wind
chills, it will be a battle of increasing winds and rising temps by
daybreak to see if we will reach advisory-level chills of -25F or
lower.
Monday through Friday: A few clipper systems will bring several
rounds of light snow during this time (Monday, Tuesday into Tuesday
night, and Wednesday afternoon through Thursday). The first two
systems look rather disorganized, with only modest mid to upper-
level support. While the Wed-Thu system does have more upper-level
jet support, deep-layer moisture will be less than ideal. Will
continue to monitor each system, but at this time, all snowfall
events look to remain at sub-advisory levels. Otherwise, temps look
rather seasonable after Monday.
&&
.AVIATION...(For the 00Z TAFS through 00Z Saturday evening)
Issued at 628 PM EST FRI DEC 16 2016
As deeper mstr/steady -sn overspread Upr MI ahead of an aprchg lo
pres, expect VFR conditions to deteriorate to IFR during this evng.
The onset of lake enhancement/gusty nne winds overngt over the w and
on Sat mrng over the ncentral wl result in heavier sn/blsn and LIFR
conditions, mainly at SAW and especially IWD, which wl experience a
sharper upslope wind component. Not out of the question vsbys could
deteriorate blo airport mins/to VLIFR at these locations. There
probably wl be some improvement later in the day as the pcpn
transitions to a more pure les mode, but austere LIFR conditions wl
linger under the heavier sn bands as gusty winds/blsn linger.
&&
.MARINE...(For the 4 PM Lake Superior forecast issuance)
Issued at 342 PM EST FRI DEC 16 2016
As low pressure slides east across the Ohio Valley tonight and the
lower Great Lakes on Saturday, expect NE gales to 35 knots to
develop overnight across western Lake Superior before becoming N
gales to 35 knots across central Lake Superior on Saturday. A few
gale gusts to 35 knots may linger into Saturday evening, though
winds should diminish to under 25 knots while backing west through
Sunday. SW winds to 30 knots will quickly develop Sunday night as
low pressure approaches from the NW. Some gales to 35 knots will be
possible across mainly the west and central lake on Monday. Winds
will gradually diminish Monday night through Tuesday night while
remaining W to SW. Winds will then remain under 25 knots through
Friday as a couple weak low pressure systems cross the Upper Great
Lakes.
&&
.MQT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
Upper Michigan...
Winter Weather Advisory until midnight EST /11 PM CST/ Saturday
night for MIZ007-010-011-013-014-084-085.
Winter Weather Advisory until 7 AM EST Sunday for MIZ006.
Winter Weather Advisory until 1 AM EST Sunday for MIZ001-003.
Winter Storm Warning from 11 PM EST /10 PM CST/ this evening to
7 AM EST /6 AM CST/ Sunday for MIZ002-009.
Winter Storm Warning from 1 AM Saturday to 1 AM EST Sunday for
MIZ004-005.
Winter Weather Advisory until 6 PM CST Saturday for MIZ012.
Lake Superior...
Gale Warning from 4 AM to 6 PM EST Saturday for LSZ266.
Gale Warning from 4 AM to 3 PM EST Saturday for LSZ243>245-248-
264-265.
Gale Warning from 1 AM EST /midnight CST/ to noon EST /11 AM
CST/ Saturday for LSZ240>242-263.
Gale Warning from 10 AM to 6 PM EST Saturday for LSZ249.
Gale Warning from 1 AM EST /midnight CST/ to 9 AM EST /8 AM CST/
Saturday for LSZ162.
Lake Michigan...
None.
&&
SHORT TERM...Voss
LONG TERM...Kluber
AVIATION...KC
MARINE...KluberHAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MARQUETTE MI 347 PM EST FRI DEC 16 2016 MIZ001>007-009>014-084-085-171200- KEWEENAW-ONTONAGON-NORTHERN HOUGHTON-BARAGA-MARQUETTE-ALGER-LUCE- GOGEBIC-IRON-DICKINSON-MENOMINEE-DELTA-SOUTHERN SCHOOLCRAFT- SOUTHERN HOUGHTON-NORTHERN SCHOOLCRAFT- 347 PM EST FRI DEC 16 2016 /247 PM CST FRI DEC 16 2016/ THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF WESTERN UPPER MICHIGAN AND CENTRAL UPPER MICHIGAN. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT SNOW WILL SPREAD ACROSS UPPER MICHIGAN TONIGHT...FALLING MODERATELY AT TIMES. NORTH TO NORTHEAST WINDS WILL ALSO ENHANCE SNOWFALL ACROSS WESTERN AND NORTH CENTRAL UPPER MICHIGAN. ADDITIONALLY...WIND GUSTS AS HIGH AS 35 MPH WILL PRODUCE BLOWING SNOW AND REDUCED VISIBILITIES ALONG THE LAKE SUPERIOR SHORE. SEE THE LATEST WINTER WEATHER STATEMENT FOR MORE DETAILS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY WIDESPREAD SNOW WILL DIMINISH OVER THE AREA SATURDAY INTO SATURDAY EVENING. HOWEVER...HEAVIER LAKE EFFECT OR LAKE ENHANCED SNOW WILL CONTINUE FOR THE NORTH TO NORTHWEST WIND SNOW BELTS SATURDAY AND SATURDAY NIGHT. ADDITIONALLY...WIND GUSTS AS HIGH AS 35 MPH WILL PRODUCE BLOWING SNOW AND REDUCED VISIBILITIES ALONG THE LAKE SUPERIOR SHORE. SEE THE LATEST WINTER WEATHER STATEMENT FOR MORE DETAILS. EXPECT BITTERLY COLD CONDITIONS SATURDAY NIGHT INTO MONDAY MORNING. WIND CHILL VALUES AS LOW AS 30 BELOW ZERO WILL BE POSSIBLE ACROSS THE INTERIOR WEST HALF OF UPPER MICHIGAN SUNDAY NIGHT INTO MONDAY MORNING. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO SUBMIT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS AND ANY KNOWN ROAD CONDITIONS TO THE MARQUETTE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. THE PUBLIC MAY PROVIDE REPORTS THROUGH OUR WEB PAGE...OUR FACEBOOK AND TWITTER PAGES...OR BY PHONE. LSZ162-240>251-263>267-171200- 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- 347 PM EST FRI DEC 16 2016 /247 PM CST FRI DEC 16 2016/ THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EASTERN LAKE SUPERIOR...CENTRAL LAKE SUPERIOR AND WESTERN LAKE SUPERIOR. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT NORTHEAST GALES TO 35 KNOTS ARE EXPECTED ACROSS WESTERN LAKE SUPERIOR OVERNIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY NORTHEAST GALES TO 35 KNOTS ARE EXPECTED ACROSS MUCH OF LAKE SUPERIOR ON SATURDAY. HEAVY FREEZING SPRAY IS EXPECTED SATURDAY INTO SUNDAY MORNING. SOUTHWEST GALES TO 35 KNOTS ARE POSSIBLE MONDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... THE NEED FOR WEATHER SPOTTER REPORTS IS NOT ANTICIPATED AT THIS TIME. LMZ221-248-250-171200- 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- 347 PM EST FRI DEC 16 2016 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHERN LAKE MICHIGAN. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY A FEW GALE FORCE GUSTS TO 35 KNOTS WILL BE POSSIBLE SATURDAY EVENING. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... THE NEED FOR WEATHER SPOTTER REPORTS IS NOT ANTICIPATED AT THIS TIME. KLUBER
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
9 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.
The observer in Munising measured nearly a foot of lake enhanced snow in 36 hours. There was a public report of an estimated 13 inches of snow in 36 hours at Au Train. One inch per hour snowfall rates were reported with some of the lake enhanced snow bands at other locations in Alger County.
The Menominee County Central Dispatch reported two inches of snow in Menominee with snow covered and slippery roads.
The Delta County Central Dispatch reported two to three inches of new snow in Escanaba with slick roads.
The Dickinson County Sheriff reported an estimated three inches of new snow in Iron Mountain with slick roads.
The National Weather Service in Negaunee Township measured 14.1 inches of lake enhanced snow in 29 hours. The snow was moderate to heavy at times on the 17th reducing visibility to less than one-quarter mile at times. The 13.7 inches of snow which fell on the 17th broke the previous record snowfall for the date. There was also a report of an estimated 14 inches of snow in Little Lake during the same time period.
The observer in Ironwood measured nine inches of lake enhanced snow in 36 hours. Isolated heavier snowfall amounts closer to one foot were measured in Bessemer on the 17th.
The observer in Allouez measured 9.5 inches of lake enhanced snow in 36 hours.
The spotter in L'anse measured 11 inches of lake enhanced snow in 24 hours with some drifting of snow.
The spotter in White Pine measured eight inches of lake enhanced snow in 12 hours.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Michigan in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyWarnings in Michigan, December 2016
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: 669629, 669610, 669612, 669613, 669619, 669626, 669632, 669615, 669617.