Iosco County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Iosco County: 4.
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.

Every large fire

1. Large fires mapped by the Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity program since 1984: 1,000 acres or more in the West, 500 or more in the East. Prescribed burns are excluded. Acres here are the part of each perimeter inside this place.

Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (USGS and U.S. Forest Service), 1984 to 2026.

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. May 18, 2020Flood$1.2 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Widespread areal flooding developed in central and southern Iosco County on the 18th. Many creeks and rivers rose out of their banks, including the Au Gres River system and Silver Creek and its tributaries. Many roads across the county were closed, including Meadow Road in Tawas City. Railroad tracks were also washed out in Tawas City. Townline Road in Tawas Township was washed out by Dead Creek. Flooding along the Lake Huron coastline was worsened by lakeshore flooding thanks to onshore winds.

2. Jun 17, 2014Tornado$140,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   The tornado caused sporadic but considerable tree damage along its path. When it crossed the town of Hale, several high-profile vehicles were blown over, numerous utility poles were blown over, and several homes and businesses sustained roof damage. Estimated peak winds were 100 mph.

3. Aug 7, 2011Tornado$75,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Several people witnessed the tornado touch down between US-23 and Tawas Bay. The tornado was on the ground for less than a quarter-mile, crossing Douglas Drive just north of Lakeview Drive, before reaching the bay as a waterspout. Forty trees were downed, and six homes suffered damage, mostly roof damage due to those falling trees. Winds were estimated at 70 mph.

4. Oct 21, 2019Lakeshore Flood, Iosco$45,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Extended period of flooding reported. Between Tawas City and Alabaster, dock planks and some trees were washed away. An estimated 20 feet of beach disappeared. The road leading to the lighthouse at Tawas Point State Park was flooded, and eventually covered in sand and rocks.

5. Jul 29, 2007Wildfire, Iosco$40,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A fast-developing wildfire burned between 500 and 600 acres in Wilber Township, nine miles northwest of Tawas City. Stands of jack pine were the primary fuel for the fire. A hundred people were evacuated from the area, and three homes were damaged. The fire was fully contained by late that evening.

6. Apr 11, 2013Ice Storm, Iosco$40,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A large and complex low pressure system lifted toward the southern and western Great Lakes region, bumping into high pressure over northern Ontario and Quebec. The high helped anchor cold air in place at low levels, while warm and moist air surged in aloft ahead of the low. This resulted in a wide mix of wintry precipitation, developing on the afternoon of the 11th, and ending late that night. Eastern Upper Michigan was far enough north to get mostly snow, with up to nine inches measured in Pickford. In northern Lower, snow transitioned to sleet and freezing rain, and in some places to just rain before dwindling. Ice amounts were substantial near Saginaw Bay, with 3/4 of an inch…

7. Jul 4, 2003Thunderstorm Wind$25,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Trees and utility lines were downed. A business sign was blown down, damaging nearby parked cars.

8. Jul 9, 2006Thunderstorm Wind$25,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Considerable tree damage extended from just upstream of Cooke Dam to the upper reaches of the Foote Dam Pond. Many trees knocked over at the Sawmill Point Campground in the Huron National Forest. A sign, a boat trailer, and a camper were all destroyed or heavily damaged by fallen trees.

9. Dec 16, 2021High Wind, Iosco$20,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   An impressive sub-980mb cyclone tracked across western Lake Superior into Ontario during the morning of 12/16, bringing widespread wind gusts of 60-70mph across all of northern Michigan. The highest gust recorded was 70mph at Traverse City Cherry Capitol airport. Widespread downed trees, limbs and powerlines were seen across the County Warning Area, leaving many with power outages that extended for several days. Some schools and businesses across the area were forced to close for the day due to power outages. The Mackinac Bridge was forced to partially close to high profile vehicles for around 12 hours due to winds reported of 82 mph from the mid-span of the bridge.

10. Jul 17, 2006Thunderstorm Wind$20,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Numerous trees and power lines downed. Camper trailer flipped over.

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

106°F2 times, most recently Jul 9, 1936

All-time low

−29°F2 times, most recently Feb 20, 1929

Warmest night

78°FJul 3, 1919

Coldest day

−2°F3 times, most recently Feb 9, 1933

Wettest day

3.72 inAug 16, 1938

Snowiest day

20.0 inFeb 14, 1911

Hottest year

1998mean 49.6°F

Coldest year

1904mean 40.3°F

Wettest year

201441.10 in

Driest year

193019.46 in

Snowiest season

93.2 in1978-79

Station E Tawas (USC00202423), 586 ft elevation, 5.2 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1890 to October 25, 2026; 99.7% 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 USC00202423.
• 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.