Waterspout in Lake Michigan

Events

180

Deaths

0

Injuries

0

Damage

None recorded

• Marine Thunderstorm Winds and Waterspout in Lake Michigan, June 30, 2011$50,000 · 82 kt wind · 5 eventsPowerful thunderstorms moved southeast across southern Lake Michigan during the evening hours of June 30th.
• Marine Thunderstorm Winds and Waterspout in Lake Michigan, August 9, 202572 kt wind · 13 eventsA line of thunderstorms produced strong winds over the bay of Green Bay and Lake Michigan during the evening hours on Saturday (8/09) as well as a brief waterspout over Eagle Harbor on the bay of Green Bay.
• Waterspouts in Lake Michigan, September 28, 20169 eventsThere were over a dozen sightings of waterspouts on southern Lake Michigan on Wednesday, September 28. Many of these were observed from the Illinois and Indiana shores.
• Marine Thunderstorm Winds and Waterspout in Lake Michigan, August 10, 202070 kt wind · 8 eventsDuring the afternoon of Monday August 10th, a line of intense thunderstorms known as a derecho brought widespread severe winds to all of southern Lake Michigan. One tornado touched down near Rogers Park in Chicago and then moved over the lake as a waterspout.
• Marine Thunderstorm Winds and Waterspout in Lake Michigan, June 8, 200870 kt wind · 7 eventsStrong to severe storms moved across southern Lake Michigan during the late morning and early afternoon hours of June 8th.
• Waterspouts in Lake Michigan, September 24, 20117 eventsOn September 24th, 2011 an unseasonably cold air mass flowed over the warm waters of Lake Michigan creating very unstable conditions in the low levels of the atmosphere. The lake surface temperature was estimated to be in the lower to middle 60s F.
• Waterspouts in Lake Michigan, September 12, 20157 eventsWaterspouts developed across southern Lake Michigan during the morning hours on the 12th.
• Marine Thunderstorm Winds and Waterspout in Lake Michigan, August 2, 201556 kt wind · 7 eventsAn isolated supercell developed moved over Lake Michigan during the afternoon producing strong winds.
• Marine Thunderstorm Winds and Waterspouts in Lake Michigan, July 14, 202458 kt wind · 7 eventsA line of severe thunderstorms moved across southern Lake Michigan during the late evening of July 14th producing severe winds and two waterspouts.
• Marine Thunderstorm Winds and Waterspout in Lake Michigan, June 20, 200750 kt wind · 6 eventsSevere thunderstorms that passed through eastern Wisconsin continued to produce high winds and large hail as they moved offshore.
• Waterspouts in Lake Michigan, September 24, 20116 eventsAtmospheric conditions became favorable for non-thunderstorm waterspouts during the early morning hours of September 24th, as very cold air aloft interacted with a convergence boundary along the Illinois shore of Lake Michigan.
• Marine Thunderstorm Winds and Waterspouts in Lake Michigan, July 9, 20065 eventsThunderstorms developed over northern Wisconsin during the afternoon and moved across the Bay of Green Bay producing strong winds. A waterspout was also spotted east of Marinette.
• Waterspouts in Lake Michigan, September 13, 20235 eventsThe environment was prime for fair weather waterspouts across the southern half of Lake Michigan during the morning hours of September 13, 2023.
• Waterspouts in Lake Michigan, September 15, 20034 events
• Waterspouts in Lake Michigan, August 29, 20064 eventsA brief waterspout was observed by many people. It formed along a shear line set up by a land breeze. Towering cumulus clouds were noted along with some rain showers in the vicinity, but there were no thunderstorms.
• Waterspouts in Lake Michigan, September 25, 20064 eventsA spotter reported multiple waterspouts off of Norwood.
• Marine Thunderstorm Winds and Waterspout in Lake Michigan, July 12, 20074 eventsThunderstorms produced high wind gusts of around 45 mph over east central Lake Michigan.
• Waterspouts in Lake Michigan, September 9, 20124 eventsScattered lake effect showers developed over southern Lake Michigan with numerous waterspouts reported during the early afternoon hours.
• Marine Thunderstorm Winds and Waterspout in Lake Michigan, October 14, 201270 kt wind · 4 eventsA line of thunderstorms along a strong cold front moved over Lake Michigan.
• Waterspouts in Lake Michigan, September 12, 20134 eventsConvective showers that eventually took on low-topped supercell thunderstorm-like characteristics over the near shore waters produced several waterspouts southeast of Kenosha.
• Waterspouts in Lake Michigan, August 19, 20023 events
• Marine Thunderstorm Winds and Waterspout in Lake Michigan, May 21, 200454 kt wind · 3 eventsThe same cluster of thunderstorms that produced areas of wind damage across parts of south-central and most of southeast Wisconsin, moved over the lake waters a short time later.
• Waterspouts in Lake Michigan, September 29, 20063 eventsA waterspout was reported west of Holland.
• Waterspouts in Lake Michigan, June 22, 20113 eventsA line of thunderstorms produced waterspouts and gusty winds.
• Waterspouts in Lake Michigan, October 19, 20113 eventsUnstable conditions in the low levels of the atmosphere over Lake Michigan along with increasing low-level convergence associated with a developing Low Pressure system in the Tennessee and Ohio Valleys produced several waterspouts over the near shore waters of Lake Michigan…

Waterspout everywhereEvery kind of event in Lake Michigan

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.