EF0 Tornado Confirmed in Wexford County Sunday Evening

(Please scroll down for damage and radar pictures)

A National Weather Service storm survey has concluded that a weak EF0 tornado touched down roughly 3 miles south of Cadillac right around 6:56 pm on Sunday. The report follows below:

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0656 PM     TORNADO          3 S CADILLAC            44.20N 85.41W
07/18/2010                   WEXFORD            MI   NWS STORM SURVEY

            A NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STORM SURVEY CONFIRMED A WEAK
            EF0 TORNADO ABOUT 3 MILES SOUTH OF CADILLAC. THE TORNADO
            TOUCHED DOWN AT 656 PM...TEARING THE ROOF OFF AN OUT
            BUILDING AT A LUMBER YARD. THE TORNADO WAS ONLY ON THE
            GROUND BRIEFLY, LIFTING BY 658 PM. THE TOTAL PATH LENGTH
            WAS ESTIMATED AT 100 YARDS, WITH MAXIMUM WINDS OF 65 MPH.

In addition to the tornado touchdown near Cadillac, the NWS survey team concluded that the damage north of Houghton Lake was caused by straight line winds of between 60 and 65 mph. While the thunderstorm exhibited strong rotation, a tornado was never able to make contact with the ground. The report follows below:

..TIME..    ...EVENT...     ...CITY LOCATION...      ...LAT.LON...
..DATE..    ....MAG....     ..COUNTY LOCATION.. ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0717 PM     TSTM WND DMG     5 N HOUGHTON LAKE       44.37N  84.76W
07/18/2010                   ROSCOMMON          MI   TRAINED SPOTTER

            NUMEROUS TREES DOWN AT THE NORTHERN END OF HOUGHTON
            LAKE. TIME ESTIMATED BY RADAR.

0732 PM     TSTM WND DMG     2 ENE PRUDENVILLE       44.30N  84.64W
07/18/2010  E65 MPH          ROSCOMMON          MI   NWS STORM SURVEY

            *** 1 INJ *** 2 FOOT DIAMETER TREE FELL ON HOUSE. MAN
            INJURED FROM FALLING GLASS ON PORCH.

A warm front lifting north along the M-55 corridor combined with plenty of moisture and wind shear in the atmosphere to produce a round of severe thunderstorms across portions of northern lower Michigan late Sunday afternoon and evening. Several of the storms contained strong rotation, indicative of possible tornadoes. As seen above, one tornado touchdown was confirmed roughly 3 miles south of Cadillac. If you have any pictures or know of exact locations of damage, please contact the NWS Office in Gaylord at (989) 731-3384.  

Below is a look at radar imagery during the event. The top pictures show what is known as reflectivity, which is basically a measure of raindrops or hailstones in a storm (the brighter the colors, the heavier the rain). The bottom bottom pictures show the corresponding velocity data. Note where there is a strong couplet of red and green pixels, noting areas of strong rotation and possible tornadoes. Please click on any image to see a larger version.

Manistee/Wexford County Storm

Roscommon County/Houghton Lake Storm

Crawford County Storm

 

A Few Pictures Taken During the Event
(Courtesy of Various Observers and 9&10 News)

Picture of a wall cloud

Picture of a definite wall cloud just south of Cadillac, right around 7pm Sunday evening.

Picture of a possible tornado, but a definite wall cloud

Picture of a possible tornado taken looking south across Lake Mitchell near Cadillac just before 7 pm.

Picture of a wall cloud

Another picture of a definite wall cloud just south of Cadillac, right around 7pm Sunday evening.

Picture of a wall cloud

Picture of a definite wall cloud just south of Cadillac, right around 7pm Sunday evening.

Damage at an abandoned lumber yard in association with a brief tornado touchdown just south of Cadillac.

Weak tornado damage at an abandoned lumber yard near Cadillac.

Picture of a large tree snapped near the northern end of Houghton Lake.

Picture of a large tree snapped near its base at the northern end of Houghton Lake.

Several trees snapped off on the northern end of Houghton Lake

Several trees snapped off on the northern end of Houghton Lake

 

 

More tree damage near Houghton Lake.

More tree damage near Houghton Lake.

Listed below are preliminary reports received during the severe weather event: 

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT...SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GAYLORD MI
945 PM EDT SUN JUL 18 2010

..TIME..    ...EVENT...     ...CITY LOCATION...      ...LAT.LON...
..DATE..    ....MAG....     ..COUNTY LOCATION.. ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0650 PM     HAIL             2 SE CADILLAC           44.23N  85.39W
07/18/2010  E0.75 INCH       WEXFORD            MI   BROADCAST MEDIA

            RELAY FROM 9 & 10 NEWS


0650 PM     TSTM WND DMG     3 SSW CADILLAC          44.21N  85.44W
07/18/2010                   WEXFORD            MI   BROADCAST MEDIA

            STEEL ROOF RIPPED OFF OF LUMBER COMPANY BUILDING.
            POSSIBLE TORNADO. TIME ESTIMATED.


0708 PM     WALL CLOUD       5 SSE CADILLAC          44.18N  85.38W
07/18/2010                   WEXFORD            MI   TRAINED SPOTTER


0717 PM     TSTM WND DMG     7 NNW HOUGHTON LAKE          44.18N  84.47W
07/18/2010                   ROSCOMMON          MI   TRAINED SPOTTER

            NUMEROUS TREES DOWN AT THE NORTHERN END OF HOUGHTON
            LAKE. TIME ESTIMATED BY RADAR.


0725 PM     FUNNEL CLOUD     5 N HOUGHTON LAKE       44.37N  84.76W
07/18/2010                   ROSCOMMON          MI   TRAINED SPOTTER


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