Montmorency County

Every recorded tornado

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

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.

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.

Costliest events since 1996

1. Jun 13, 2004Tornado$150,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Tornado tracked from just southwest of Rust, to the Alpena County line east of Hillman. Damage was sporadic, suggesting the tornado was on the ground only intermittently. Occasional tree damage occurred along the path. Damage to structures occurred in Rust, where roofs were damaged and windows broken. Just northeast of the community, the tornado destroyed a barn and silo and a nearby 80-year old farmhouse. More homes were damaged two miles south of Hillman, with shingles blown off and one home struck by a falling tree. A billboard was destroyed along M-32 at the Alpena/Montmorency County line.

2. Mar 2, 2012Heavy Snow, Montmorency$150,000
   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…

3. Jul 3, 1999Tornado$60,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   60 yard wide swath of trees snapped off 8 feet above the ground. 3 homes damaged. Several mobile homes damaged. Tornado continued into Oscoda county.

4. Jun 5, 2005Thunderstorm Wind$40,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous trees were downed in southwest Montmorency County. Most of the damage was near Lewiston. A truck was struck by a falling tree, injuring the driver. Two garages in Lewiston were damaged by falling trees. Shingles were torn off of some roofs.

5. Jul 15, 2008Thunderstorm Wind$28,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Many trees were snapped off. High winds on East Twin Lake flipped over pontoon boats, and damage some docks.

6. May 30, 2013Thunderstorm Wind$22,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Over forty trees were downed in Clear Lake State Park.

7. Jun 8, 2011Thunderstorm Wind$22,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Widespread trees downed in the Avalon Lake area. A barn in Hillman was deroofed, and numerous apple trees were downed or damaged.

8. Jul 15, 2008Thunderstorm Wind$20,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A few trees and several large limbs were downed. One home was damaged by a falling tree. The storm also produced half-inch diameter hail.

9. Nov 13, 2005High Wind, Montmorency$20,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Numerous trees and power lines downed. Minor roof damage to some homes.

10. Dec 20, 2012Winter Storm, Montmorency$15,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    A powerful low pressure system passed across Southern Lower Michigan on the night of the 20th. Precipitation surged north into Northern Michigan early in the day on the 20th, falling primarily as snow over Eastern Upper and the high terrain of Northern Lower, and as a rain/snow mix near the coasts. The snow was heavy where it was all snow, with 6 to 9 inches falling during the day in some areas. As night arrived, cooler air started to enter the region, and precipitation changed to all snow (except near Saginaw Bay). Another, more widespread round of heavy snow resulted. Total snowfall amounts of 5 to 10 inches were common near the Northern Lower Michigan coastline, ramping up to…

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°FJul 13, 1936

All-time low

−37°FFeb 17, 1979

Warmest night

79°FJun 23, 2025

Coldest day

−5°FFeb 9, 1933

Wettest day

5.14 inSep 3, 1937

Snowiest day

18.2 inFeb 22, 1922

Hottest year

2024mean 48.4°F

Coldest year

1917mean 39.6°F

Wettest year

201740.15 in

Driest year

192517.05 in

Snowiest season

166.3 in1970-71

Station Alpena County Regional Airport (USW00094849), 683 ft elevation, 27.9 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1916 to October 26, 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.

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 USW00094849.
• 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.