Flood — Marquette, Michigan

2003-05-15 to 2003-05-20 · Marquette, Michigan

Wider weather episode

When the Mother's Day storm runoff from the Huron Mountains overwhelmed a dike holding back Silver Lake in northwest Marquette County, a wave of water inundated the Dead River basin all the way to Lake Superior in Marquette. A number of roads and bridges were washed out by the flood waters. Officials in the city of Marquette issued a mandatory evacuation order for about 1800 people living north of Wright Street. The Presque Isle Power Plant at the Upper Harbor in Marquette was flooded and shut down for a number of days, resulting in shortages of electricity across western and central Upper Michigan. Flood waters on the Dead River did not subside until May 20th.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 5356362. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.