Michigan, 2020

Lakeshore Flood and High Wind in Michigan, March 29, 2020

March 29, 2020 · NWS DTX · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

5 inches of rainfall across southeast Michigan. As this system exited northeast, strong southwest to west-southwest winds followed during the daytime hours of Sunday, with gusts of 40 to 60 mph observed.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 2 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
2

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 DTX wrote it up.

Strong low pressure tracked through the Great Lakes region producing 1 to 2.5 inches of rainfall across southeast Michigan. As this system exited northeast, strong southwest to west-southwest winds followed during the daytime hours of Sunday, with gusts of 40 to 60 mph observed. Detroit Metro even had a higher wind gust of 62 mph reported around 230 PM in the afternoon. More than 15,000 DTE customers lost power across Metro Detroit. In addition, the strong southwest winds caused the water levels to backup over the St. Clair River, leading to some flooding as the water level at Algonac peaked at 65.1 inches above LWD just before 5 PM. Some additional flooding and erosion also occurred downwind of Lake St. Clair over parts of southern St. Clair county.

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 Detroit, MI wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 28, 6:34 PM EST, 18 hours 26 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 28, 6:34 PM EST, 18 hours 26 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

1 high wind, 1 lakeshore flood. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Wayne

When
March 29, 1:00 PM EST to 5:00 PM EST
Where
Wayne forecast zone
Measured
54 kt (62 mph) measured gust
Reported by
ASOS
Coordinates
42.285, -83.261 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lakeshore Flood, St. Clair

When
March 29, 2:00 PM EST to 7:00 PM EST
Where
St. Clair forecast zone
Reported by
Emergency Manager
Coordinates
42.931, -82.664 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

High Wind
Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.
Lakeshore Flood
Flooding along the shore of one of the Great Lakes or another large lake.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Michigan in 2020Every state in 2020This day in weather historyWarnings in Michigan, March 2020

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: 874716, 874718.