Storm Records: Lake Superior
Every storm the National Weather Service has filed in Lake Superior: its floods, heat, cold, winter storms, hail, wind, lightning and tornadoes, year by year and county by county, each episode with its narrative.
The worst in Lake Superior on the map
The deadliest and costliest episodes on record here, colored by kind of event.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The record
- Events
- 1,453
- Deaths
- 8
- Injuries
- 1
- Damage
- $415,000
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.
Every year
Tap a year for every episode in it.
Deaths each year
By kind of event
| Kind of event | Events | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marine Thunderstorm Wind | 856 | 0 | 0 | $410,000 |
| Marine High Wind | 464 | 0 | 0 | |
| Marine Hail | 108 | 0 | 0 | |
| Waterspout | 20 | 0 | 0 | |
| Marine Strong Wind | 5 | 8 | 1 | $5,000 |
The deadliest
- Marine Strong Wind in Lake Superior, August 30, 2018A family of five fell into Lake Superior when their kayak overturned in rough water. The father and three children tried swimming to shore but were found deceased due to hypothermia. The mother was found alive with the kayak. Everyone was wearing life jackets.
- Marine Strong Wind in Lake Superior, December 23, 2014Waves as high as 6 feet washed a man into the lake as he was sitting on a rock along the shore of Lake Superior at Bluefin Bay Resort. He was wearing swimming trunks as he had just exited a nearby sauna.
- Marine Strong Wind in Lake Superior, August 23, 2008Strong west winds gusting in excess of 30 knots at times whipped up high waves over Grand Traverse Bay on Lake Superior on the 23rd. The high waves sank a 16-foot fishing boat which claimed the life of a Laurium man.
- Marine Strong Wind in Lake Superior, September 30, 2019A 21-foot aluminum boat exited the Superior Entry and entered Lake Superior the morning of the 30th. Waves of 2 to 4 feet swamped the boat and then capsized it, sending the three occupants into the water.
- Marine Thunderstorm Wind in Lake Superior, June 17, 2006The winds caused major damage to docks and boats.
- Marine Thunderstorm Wind in Lake Superior, September 3, 2017Strong thunderstorm-induced winds and waves battered the shorelines of Sand, Rocky and Outer Islands of the Apostle Islands. The winds and waves damaged moored boats by pushing the boats into shore.
- Marine Strong Wind in Lake Superior, August 21, 2021Wind gusts of 20 to 25 knots lead to waves of 3 to 4 feet along the Bayfield Peninsula during the afternoon of the 21st. A group of 11 kayakers were caught in the 3 to 4 foot waves and many capsized and had to be rescued by the National Park Service.
The costliest
Marine zones
The places filed most often, as the offices named them.
| Marine zone | Events | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manitou Island to Marquette Mi and W of Grand Marais Mi to Us/Canadian Border Beyond 5nm of Shore zone | 203 | 0 | 0 | |
| Saxon Harbor Wi to Upper Entrance of Portage Canal Mi 5nm Offshore to Us/Canadian Border Inc Isle Royal Np zone | 122 | 0 | 0 | |
| Munising to Grand Marais Mi zone | 108 | 0 | 0 | |
| Huron Islands to Marquette Mi zone | 99 | 0 | 0 | |
| Marquette to Munising Mi zone | 98 | 0 | 0 | |
| Upper Entrance of Portage Canal to Manitou Island Mi 5nm Offshore to Us/Canadian Border zone | 86 | 0 | 0 | |
| Grand Marais to Whitefish Point Mi zone | 85 | 0 | 0 | |
| Manitou Island to Marquette Mi Beyond 5nm From Shore zone | 74 | 0 | 0 | |
| Duluth Mn to Pt Wing Wi zone | 66 | 1 | 0 | |
| Ontonagon to Upper Entrance of Portage Canal Mi zone | 60 | 0 | 0 | |
| St Marys River From Point Iroquois to E Potagannissing Bay zone | 38 | 0 | 0 | |
| Point Isabelle to Lower Entrance of Portage Canal Mi zone | 34 | 1 | 0 | |
| Eagle River to Manitou Island Mi zone | 33 | 0 | 0 | |
| Portage Lake to Huron Is Mi to Lower Entrance of Portage Canal to Huron Is Inc Keweenaw and Huron Bays zone | 31 | 0 | 0 | |
| Black River to Ontonagon Mi zone | 30 | 0 | 0 | |
| Saxon Harbor Wi to Black River Mi zone | 24 | 0 | 0 | |
| Upper Entrance of Portage Canal to Eagle River Mi zone | 24 | 0 | 0 | |
| Grand Marais Mi to Whitefish Point Mi 5nm Offshore to the Us/Canadian Border zone | 22 | 0 | 0 | |
| Chequamegon Bay Bayfield to Oak Pt Wi zone | 20 | 0 | 0 | |
| Sand Is to Bayfield Wi zone | 19 | 4 | 0 | $10,000 |
| St Marys River & Pt Iroquois to Ern Potagannissing Bay marine | 12 | 0 | 0 | |
| Pt Wing to Sand Is Wi zone | 12 | 0 | 1 | $5,000 |
| Whitefish Bay & Whitefish Pt to Pt Iroquois Mi marine | 11 | 0 | 0 | |
| Two Hbrs to Duluth Mn zone | 11 | 0 | 0 | |
| Silver Bay Hbr to Two Hbrs Mn zone | 11 | 0 | 0 | |
| Ls W of in Saxon Hbr Wi to Grand Portage Mn Byd 5nm zone | 10 | 0 | 0 | |
| Grand Marais to Taconite Hbr Mn zone | 9 | 2 | 0 | |
| Whitefish Bay From Whitefish Point to Point Iroquois Mi zone | 9 | 0 | 0 | |
| Marquette to Munising Mi marine | 8 | 0 | 0 | |
| Keweenaw Bay and Huron Bay Lwr Ent Lt to Portage Lake to Huron Is Mi marine | 8 | 0 | 0 | |
| Oak Pt to Saxon Hbr Wi zone | 7 | 0 | 0 | |
| Saxon Hbr Wi to Ontonagon Mi marine | 6 | 0 | 0 | |
| Manitou Island to Point Isabelle Mi zone | 6 | 0 | 0 | |
| Duluth Mn to Pt Wing Wi marine | 5 | 0 | 0 | |
| Upr Ent of Portage Canal to Manitou Is Mi marine | 5 | 0 | 0 | |
| Grand Marais to Whitefish Pt Mi marine | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
| Munising to Grand Marais Mi marine | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
| Huron Is to Marquette Mi marine | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
| Ontonagon to Upr Ent of Portage Canal Mi marine | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
| Grand Portage to Grand Marais Mn zone | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
| Chequamegon Bay Bayfield to Oak Pt Wi marine | 3 | 0 | 0 | $400,000 |
| Ls E of Ln From Saxon Hbr Wi to Grand Portage Mn to Ln Manitou Is Mi Nwd Byd 5nm and S of Intl Border marine | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
| Ls E of Ln From Saxon Hbr Wi to Grand Portage Mn to Ln Manitou Is Mi Nwd Byd 5nm and S of Intl Border zone | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
| Upr Ent of Portage Canal to Manitou Is Mi zone | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| Huron Is to Marquette Mi zone | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| Ls E of Line From Manitou Is Mi Nwd and S of Intl Border zone | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| Ontonagon to Upr Ent of Portage Canal Mi zone | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| Outer Apostle Islands Beyond 5 Nm From Mainland zone | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| Grand Marais to Whitefish Pt marine | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Sand Is to Bayfield Wi marine | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Ls E of Line From Manitou Is Mi Nwd and S of Intl Border marine | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Two Hbrs to Duluth Mn marine | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Whitefish Bay & Whitefish Pt to Pt Iroquois Mi zone | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Saxon Hbr Wi to Ontonagon Mi zone | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Keweenaw Bay and Huron Bay Lwr Ent Lt to Portage Lake to Huron Is Mi zone | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| St. Marys River From Point Iroquois to East Potagannissing Bay zone | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Every year
More
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 2026-09-24.