Emmet County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Emmet County: 0.
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.

Every storm within 100 miles

1. Tropical storms and hurricanes (34 kt or more, still tropical) at closest approach. Post-tropical remnants with gale-force winds are listed but not counted. Direct: track within 50 miles; near: within 100 miles. Distance is measured to the county boundary for counties and to the city centre for cities, using positions interpolated hourly between HURDAT2 fixes.

National Hurricane Center HURDAT2, 1851 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.

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.

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. Mar 2, 2012Heavy Snow, Emmet$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   One of the highest-impact snowstorms in recent memory pounded Northern Michigan on the night of the 2nd. Low pressure tracked from Missouri, to southern Lower Michigan, and on to eastern Canada, while rapidly strengthening. Precipitation surged northward into the region on the evening of the 2nd. This was primarily snow, except in parts of east central Lower Michigan (especially near Lake Huron), where temperatures were mild enough for rain. Snow wound down on the morning of the 3rd, and though somewhat blustery winds occurred behind the system on the 3rd, blowing snow was limited because the snowfall was so wet.|Snow totals ranged from 6 to 14 inches across most of Northern…

2. Apr 13, 2020Lakeshore Flood, Emmet$150,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Strong low pressure passed just north of eastern upper Michigan on the morning of the 13th. Gusty west to northwest winds developed during the day, in the wake of the low. Gusts of 40 to 50 mph were common across northern Michigan, especially during the afternoon. The highest measured wind gust was 58 mph at the airport in Gaylord. Some localized power outages resulted. Lakeshore flooding also occurred along portions of the Lake Michigan coastline of northwest lower Michigan. The city boat launch in Frankfort experienced flooding of docks and the parking lot. And severe coastal erosion destroyed a portion of the Little Traverse Wheelway between Petoskey and Charlevoix.

3. Jul 18, 2020Thunderstorm Wind$135,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Severe winds caused extensive tree damage and some property damage in Petoskey and Bay View. Many trees and large limbs were downed, damaging a few structures. A large sign outside of a hotel was blown down, and trees on the property were uprooted. The Pennsylvania Plaza Building in Petoskey suffered damage to roofing and exterior brickwork.

4. Jun 24, 1998Hail$100,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Large hail up to 2.50" in diameter caused $100,000 worth of damage to cars on two lots west of Petoskey.

5. Jul 18, 2020Flash Flood$80,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Thunderstorms moved repeatedly over the same area on the afternoon of the 18th. Rainfall amounts of 2 to 4 inches were estimated to fall from just northeast of Petoskey, on toward Indian River. Measured rainfall amounts by the next morning were as high as 5.25 inches near Afton, though this occurred over multiple rounds of thunderstorms, not just this late afternoon batch. Flash flooding was reported in the community of Oden in Emmet County, where knee-high water flooded homes along Pingree Avenue, on the east side of town.

6. Sep 4, 2014High Wind, Emmet$65,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Wind speeds were measured in the 50 to 55 mph range in and around Petoskey. They were likely higher in Harbor Springs, where considerable damage was done at the marina. The winds were accompanied by a significant rise in water level. Numerous docks were damaged, and multiple boats were capsized and/or pushed ashore.

7. Aug 26, 2003Thunderstorm Wind$51,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous trees and power lines were downed. Several homes and cottages were damaged by falling trees near Crooked and Pickerel Lakes, and a small aluminum boat was tossed into a tree. At a dealership in Petoskey, trailers were rolled off of a parking lot and into a ditch.

8. Oct 27, 2010High Wind, Emmet$47,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   An historically deep low pressure system lifted across Minnesota on the 26th, and passed just north of Lake Superior on the 27th. This storm produced widespread strong to damaging winds across Northern Michigan. Damaging winds kicked in at a few spots by mid-afternoon on the 26th, but the 27th saw the highest winds, with widespread tree and roofing damage, along with power outages. Some vehicles and structures were damaged by falling trees. Power was out for several days at some locations. Peak wind speeds included: 72 mph in Naubinway; 63 mph at Whitefish Point, Manistee Harbor, and Gaylord; 59 mph in Pellston; and 58 mph in Alpena. At one point, the Alpena Airport suspended…

9. Sep 21, 2018Thunderstorm Wind$40,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Several trees were downed in Harbor Springs, and a couple of homes were damaged by fallen trees.

10. Jun 27, 2005Thunderstorm Wind$25,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Numerous trees were downed from downtown Petoskey to the M-119/US-31 intersection. A restaurant at that intersection was damaged by a falling tree.

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°FJun 19, 1995

All-time low

−37°F3 times, most recently Feb 17, 1979

Warmest night

78°FAug 25, 1948

Coldest day

−4°F2 times, most recently Feb 7, 1994

Wettest day

5.33 inJun 29, 2026

Snowiest day

16.0 inJan 26, 1978

Hottest year

2024mean 47.2°F

Coldest year

2014mean 39.3°F

Wettest year

197242.65 in

Driest year

200720.83 in

Snowiest season

200.2 in1971-72

Station Pellston Regional Airport (USW00014841), 706 ft elevation, 10.8 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1948 to October 26, 2026; 99.8% 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.

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.

Neighbouring counties

• 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 USW00014841.
• 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.