Lake Michigan, 2023

Marine Thunderstorm Winds in Lake Michigan, August 2, 2023

August 2, 2023 · NWS GRB · 4 events in 3 counties and zones

Thunderstorms repeatedly developed along an instability gradient across northeast Wisconsin along the Michigan border from the late afternoon through the evening hours and produced strong winds as they traveled over the bay of Green Bay and Lake Michigan waters on Wednesday (8/2).

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 GRB wrote it up.

Thunderstorms repeatedly developed along an instability gradient across northeast Wisconsin along the Michigan border from the late afternoon through the evening hours and produced strong winds as they traveled over the bay of Green Bay and Lake Michigan waters on Wednesday (8/2).

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 Green Bay, WI wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 2, 11:40 AM CST, 2 hours 20 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 2, 11:40 AM CST, 2 hours 20 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>
Hazardous weather outlook, Aug 2, 2:52 AM CST, 11 hours 8 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>

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Aug 2, 1:15 PM CST, 45 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 Green Bay radar (KGRB), 98 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:01 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

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

Marine Thunderstorm Wind, Green Bay South From Cedar River Mi to Rock Island Passage and North From Oconto Wi to Little Sturgeon Bay Wi

When
August 2, 2:00 PM CST to 2:01 PM CST
Where
Green Bay South From Cedar River Mi to Rock Island Passage and North From Oconto Wi to Little Sturgeon Bay Wi forecast zone, Chambers Island Station (Cbrw3)
Measured
34 kt (39 mph) measured gust
Reported by
Buoy
Coordinates
45.200, -87.360

Thunderstorms produced a gust to 34 knots at Chambers Island.

Marine Thunderstorm Wind, Green Bay South From Cedar River Mi to Rock Island Passage and North From Oconto Wi to Little Sturgeon Bay Wi

When
August 2, 5:12 PM CST to 5:20 PM CST
Where
Green Bay South From Cedar River Mi to Rock Island Passage and North From Oconto Wi to Little Sturgeon Bay Wi forecast zone, Menominee Station (Mnmm4)
Measured
35 kt (40 mph) measured gust
Reported by
Buoy
Coordinates
45.100, -87.590

Thunderstorms produced wind gusts to 35 knots at the Menominee, MI buoy.

Marine Thunderstorm Wind, Green Bay South From Oconto Wi to Little Sturgeon Bay Wi

When
August 2, 6:00 PM CST to 6:01 PM CST
Where
Green Bay South From Oconto Wi to Little Sturgeon Bay Wi forecast zone, 0.69 mi S of Central Green Bay Buoy (45014)
Measured
45 kt (52 mph) measured gust
Reported by
Buoy
Coordinates
44.790, -87.760

Thunderstorms produced a gust to 45 knots at the south Green Bay buoy.

Marine Thunderstorm Wind, Sturgeon Bay to Two Rivers Wi

When
August 2, 6:42 PM CST to 6:43 PM CST
Where
Sturgeon Bay to Two Rivers Wi forecast zone, 4.53 mi NNE of Kewaunee Station (Kwnw3)
Measured
40 kt (46 mph) estimated gust
Reported by
911 Call Center
Coordinates
44.529, -87.461

Thunderstorms produced strong winds over the Lake Michigan waters near Kewaunee.

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 2023Every state in 2023This 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: 1106993, 1106994, 1106995, 1106996.