Norton Shores

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond this area.
2. Weak tornadoes were under-recorded before Doppler radar coverage became national in the early 1990s, so earlier decades read low. Ratings use the Fujita scale before February 2007 and the Enhanced Fujita scale after.

Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, 1950 to 2025.

Smoke overhead

1. A smoke day is a date on which a smoke plume traced by NOAA Hazard Mapping System analysts from satellite imagery covered this place's point (the county's population centre or the city centre). Counts here are of medium or heavy smoke. Since 2018 analysts have often drawn light smoke as one area over most of the continent, so light-smoke counts are not comparable from year to year. The plumes show smoke anywhere in the air above, not air quality at the ground, and smoke hidden by cloud is missed.

NOAA Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, 2011 to 2026, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Flood insurance figures are for Muskegon County, the county that contains Norton Shores.

Claims by ZIP code

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026. NOAA Storm Events through 2026.

River crests

River gauges in Muskegon County, the county that contains Norton Shores.

River gauges

1. Crests are the highest and the recent crests the National Weather Service lists for each river gauge in the county that has a flood stage, not every flood. Flood categories use each gauge's current flood stages; crests from before levees, dams or channel changes may not be comparable. Crests measured on an old datum are left out of the rankings.

NOAA National Water Prediction Service gauge records, retrieved October 30, 2026.

The drought index is for Muskegon County, the county that contains Norton Shores.

1. The Palmer Drought Severity Index is computed by NOAA each month from the county's average temperature and precipitation, relative to the county's own climate. Zero is normal; -3 or lower is severe drought and -4 or lower extreme drought. It describes the long-term balance of moisture, not water supply or crop losses.

NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, 1895 to September 2026, issued October 6, 2026.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. May 31, 1998Thunderstorm Wind$24.2 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Michigan State Police EMD Damage and Injury Assessment Report indicated $2,458,958 in public damage costs, 42 homes destroyed, 1805 homes damaged, 5 businesses destroyed, and 73 businesses damaged. Two injuries were reported. Total public and private costs have been estimated at $24,205,908 according to FEMA and local media reports. Numerous local roads were closed during the day of May 31st for tree and debris removal. Approximately 50% of the city of Whitehall was left without water service and 50,000 customers were left without power in Muskegon County. The Muskegon Chronicle reported 5 large transmission towers were toppled northeast of the city of Muskegon. These towers…

2. Mar 8, 2017High Wind, Muskegon$15.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Peak wind gusts of up to 60 mph resulted in numerous downed trees and limbs and power lines and widespread power outages.

3. May 18, 2020Flood$6.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Many roads across Muskegon county were flooded and there were also numerous reports of flooded basements. 67 homes sustained major damage and 3 homes incurred minor damage.

4. Apr 17, 2013Flood$5.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Heavy rain caused significant flooding on rivers and streams across Muskegon county.

5. Aug 9, 2009Thunderstorm Wind$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A peak wind gust of 61 mph was recorded at the Muskegon airport. Wind gusts of at least 75 mph were estimated based on damage across far southern Muskegon county in the Fruitport area, where hundreds of trees and numerous power lines were blown down. The entire village was left without power.

6. Feb 5, 2019Ice Storm, Muskegon$2.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Up to three quarters of an inch of freezing rain resulted in numerous downed trees, limbs, power lines and widespread power outages.

7. May 29, 1998Thunderstorm Wind$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Widespread wind damage occurred in the Muskegon metropolitan area including the cities of Muskegon, North Muskegon, Muskegon Heights, and Norton Shores and Laketon, Muskegon, and Fruitport Townships. Many large trees, utility poles, and power lines were downed by sustained 60 to 80 mph winds (estimated) over a 10 to 15 minute period. Overall, an estimated 900 power lines were downed in the Muskegon area which left approximately 54,000 homes and businesses without power, affecting approximately a third of all Muskegon County residents. Most structural damage to homes and businesses was caused by fallen trees and utility poles. An estimated 500 homes and 30 businesses sustained…

8. Feb 24, 2019High Wind, Muskegon$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Downed tree limbs and power lines and widespread power outages occurred due to wind gusts of up to around 60 mph.

9. Apr 12, 2014Thunderstorm Wind$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous trees were blown down in and near Muskegon. Numerous windows were blown out of area homes and businesses. 30,000 people in and near Muskegon lost power. Wind gusts with severe storms were estimated at up to 85 mph. A 60 mph wind gust was measured at the Muskegon airport.

10. May 21, 2004Flood, Muskegon$1.0 million
    National Weather Service narrative

    The biggest and longest duration flooding event in the past ten to twenty years occurred across southwestern and south central lower Michigan from May 20th through the third of June. Flooding in mid May resulted in very high river levels and the ground was saturated on the 20th. Numerous thunderstorm complexes and areas of heavy rainfall developed repeatedly in the vicinity of a quasi stationary frontal boundary draped across southern lower Michigan. The heaviest rain fell on Saturday, May 22nd, when over two inches of rain fell over most of the area. Total rainfall over the Grand River basin from May 20th through June 3rd varied from four to as much as seven inches.The Grand…

1. Storm Events records before 1996 cover only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail. Damage figures are as reported by the National Weather Service at the time, not adjusted for inflation.

NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 1950 to 2026, issued October 26, 2026.

All-time high

99°F3 times, most recently Jul 6, 2012

All-time low

−30°FFeb 11, 1899

Warmest night

83°FJul 5, 1911

Coldest day

−5°FFeb 9, 1899

Wettest day

5.08 inJun 27, 1921

Snowiest day

22.0 inJan 10, 1982

Hottest year

2024mean 53.2°F

Coldest year

1917mean 43.1°F

Wettest year

201947.97 in

Driest year

193016.57 in

Snowiest season

173.9 in1981-82

Station Muskegon County Airport (USW00014840), 624 ft elevation, 0.1 miles from the city centre. Daily records from 1896 to October 27, 2026; 99.9% of days in the last 30 years are complete. Records at a single station can differ from a city’s official threaded record, which may combine several stations.

NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily.

Declarations for Muskegon County.

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, retrieved October 30, 2026. Statewide declarations are not listed.

• Tornadoes NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, through 2025.
• Tropical cyclones NOAA National Hurricane Center HURDAT2 (Atlantic; Northeast and Central Pacific), through 2025.
• Wildfire USGS/USFS Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity, through 2026.
• Storm events NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, through 2026.
• Flood insurance OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026.
• Declarations OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Weather records NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily, station USW00014840.
• River crests NOAA National Weather Service, National Water Prediction Service river gauges, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Drought NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, through September 2026.
• Smoke NOAA NESDIS Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Earthquakes USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat), retrieved October 30, 2026.

Joins, thresholds and known limits are set out in the methodology. Found an error? Report it. Page built October 30, 2026.