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F1 tornado in Montmorency County, Michigan

Tornado July 3, 1999 · Montmorency County, Michigan

F1
Rating
1.0 mi
Path length
60 yd
Path width
$60K
Damage as recorded
EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

NOAA recorded where this tornado touched down but not where it lifted, so it appears as a point. Other tornadoes recorded nearby that day are shown faint.

What F1 means. This tornado was rated on Fujita’s original scale, used until 2007. F1 meant moderate damage: roofs badly stripped, mobile homes pushed off foundations or overturned, windows broken; the scale paired it with winds of 73–112 mph, figures later judged too high, especially toward the top of the scale, and revised downward in the Enhanced Fujita scale. Ratings then, as now, came from the damage.

What the National Weather Service wrote

60 yard wide swath of trees snapped off 8 feet above the ground. 3 homes damaged. Several mobile homes damaged. Tornado continued into Oscoda county.

The wider storm

A thunderstorm developed rapidly over the city of Gaylord around 7 pm. The storm brought only very heavy rains to the city of Gaylord, then raced southeast toward Lewiston. By 720 pm, the storm was moving at 50 mph and strong rotation was noted, prompting a Tornado Warning. An F1 tornado formed just minutes after passing southeast of Lewiston. It then moved out of Montmorency county into Oscoda county.By 732 pm, the storm strengthened to an F2 and reached the city of Comins, cutting it in two. It completely destroyed a Parsonage, Mennonite Church, Township Hall, Fire Department and Post Office within the town of Comins. The storm also destroyed 10 homes and damaged 45 others, in addition to destroying 4 businesses and damaging 4 others. The park facilities on the east side of Comins also sustained substantial damage.The tornado continued out of Comins as an F1, continuing into Alcona county where 16 homes were damaged along the path from the county line to Barton City. The tornado lifted in the vicinity of Barton City around 8 pm.Extensive tree damage was also noted along the 20 mile damage path of the tornado, with path widths ranging from 60 to 120 yards.

Began near Lewiston (44.8700, -84.2700).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

2 more tornadoes the National Weather Service filed under this storm episode.

F2 Oscoda CountyF1 Alcona County

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 5700782. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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