High Wind — Kent, Michigan

2017-03-08 · Kent, Michigan

$15.0M

Property damage

56 MG

Magnitude

Event narrative

A 64 mph peak wind gust was measured at the Gerald Ford airport in Grand Rapids. Peak wind gusts in the 60 to 70 mph range resulted in numerous downed trees and limbs and power lines and widespread power outages.

Wider weather episode

Widespread non thunderstorm wind gusts of 60 to 70 mph caused hundreds of thousands of people to lose power on March 8th. At one point slightly over one million people were without power in Michigan. The winds caused numerous trees and tree limbs to fall and downed thousands of power lines. The winds also caused damage to many homes and numerous homes incurred significant roof damage. Two people were killed in central lower Michigan in Clare county near the Osceola and Clare county line when a large tree fell on their vehicle while they were driving on M-115 in Freeman township.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 674082. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.