Sanilac County

Every recorded tornado

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

1. Earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more in the USGS Comprehensive Catalog since 1900. Within 50 miles means the epicentre lies within 50 miles of the county boundary (or inside the county).
2. Small earthquakes were under-recorded before the modern seismic networks of the 1970s and are still missed in remote areas, so early decades read low. Magnitudes are as the catalogue reports them and mix scales (moment, local and body-wave).

USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog, 1900 to present, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Tsunamis

1. Places where NOAA's Global Historical Tsunami Database records a tsunami's water arriving, with the greatest height it reached above sea level at the time. Only tsunamis NOAA rates probable or definite are counted. Heights from eyewitness accounts and tide gauges are mixed, and older events are less completely recorded.

NOAA NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database, retrieved October 30, 2026.

More event types since 1996

Costliest events since 1996

1. Mar 8, 2017High Wind, Sanilac$7.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A non thunderstorm event took place over the state on Wednesday, March 8, 2017, as high winds brought wind gusts in excess of 60 mph! The high winds took out power lines and trees, along with numerous reports of structural damage to buildings. There were also reports of brush fires and tractor-trailers flipped over around the area. Due to the extensive damage, many areas were without power for several days. Approximately 800,000 DTE customers and approximately 300,000 Consumers Energy customers were affected. The highest wind gust reported across Southeast Michigan was 68 mph at both Saginaw and Detroit Metro Airport.

2. Dec 21, 2013Ice Storm, Sanilac$3.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A winter storm impacted a large swath of the country from the southern Plains through the Midwest and into the Northeast on the last weekend before Christmas. This storm occurred as a deep upper-level trough over the Desert Southwest lifted northeastward, while a surface low pressure system moved from Texas into the Ohio Valley. This low moved along a very sharp frontal boundary. This front at the surface actually briefly penetrated far southeastern Michigan Friday night. The temperature at Lambertville, on the Ohio border, rose into the mid-50s, while Monroe, just 15 miles away, stayed in the mid-30s. On Saturday, copious Gulf moisture was brought northward ahead of the…

3. Aug 2, 2006Flash Flood$1.3 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Thunderstorms with very heavy rain repeatedly occurred across the same areas and dumped rain at a rate of nearly 2 inches per hour. Doppler radar estimated that 5 inches of rain fell in a west to east swath across southeast Sanilac County, and as much as 10 inches in an isolated area in and around the Brown City area. A cooperative observer in Brown City actually measured 7.35 inches over a 4 hour period on the evening of August 2nd, with an additional eight tenths of an inch falling after midnight during the early morning hours of the 3rd. The most intense rain fell from about 2000 EST on the 2nd to about 0100 EST on the 3rd. Flash flooding began around 2300 EST. Many homes in…

4. Nov 1, 2019Flood$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Widespread lakeshore flooding from record high water levels of the Great Lakes and periodic strong onshore flow occurred from late April 2019 to November 2019. Extensive erosion and property damage occurred, with monetary values in the millions. The widespread flooding ended at the end of November when the Great Lakes reached winter seasonal minimum water levels.

5. Apr 14, 2018Winter Storm, Sanilac$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A large and complex low pressure system impacted the Great Lakes region. Southeast Michigan saw heavy rain, snow, sleet and freezing rain that began on Friday (April 13) and lasted through Sunday (April 15). This system brought 2 main periods of precipitation, with a short break in between on Saturday. Total rainfall of 1 to 2 inches was common in many locations in Southeast Michigan, with 2-3 of snow and sleet north of I-69, and about 1/4 to 1/2 of ice from freezing rain between the I-94 and I-96 corridors. Widespread tree damage and power outages from an combination of the snow, sleet, and freezing rain occurred. In total, DTE and Consumers Energy reported power outages for…

6. Nov 17, 2013High Wind, Sanilac$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A powerful low pressure system strengthened and tracked northeast from the western Great Lakes towards James Bay during the afternoon of November 17th through the overnight hours. Southerly winds out ahead of the cold front allowed temperatures to soar into the lower to middle 60s during the afternoon hours across southeast Michigan. A line of thunderstorms developed with the cold front that swept through the area during the evening hours. Several of these storms produced severe wind gusts and wind damage as they moved through the area. Behind the cold front, gradient winds gusted to 55 to 65 mph during the evening and overnight hours, producing additional damage across southeast…

7. May 4, 2018High Wind, Sanilac$850,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A strong low pressure system tracked through northern Lower Michigan, swinging a strong cold front through southeast Michigan early in the afternoon. Sustained winds ranging between 30 - 40 mph, with frequent gusts in the 45 to 60 mph range, with scattered thunderstorms that developed leading to enhanced winds near 70 MPH. Downed large trees, branches, telephone and power lines were reported across all counties in Southeast Michigan, with around 230,000 customers without power during the peak. In Independence Township, a large tree fell onto a car, killing the 36 year old man inside. Additionally, a postal employee in South Lyon was also seriously hurt when a tree fell on him as…

8. Jun 22, 1996Flash Flood$800,000
9. Jan 19, 2013High Wind, Sanilac$750,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   An intense Arctic Front swept through southeast Michigan around Midnight of January 19th, with westerly winds gusting around 60 mph across much of the area during the early morning hours of January 20th. Dozens of trees and power lines were downed across individual counties, leading to power outages in excess of 120,000 DTE customers during the peak of the winds.||Here are some of the higher wind gusts and times reported:||Caro...61 MPH...1214 AM. |Pontiac...60 MPH...301 AM. |Ypsilanti...60 MPH...140 AM. |Flint...59 MPH...247 AM. |Adrian ...55 MPH...128 AM. |Detroit Metro Airport...55 MPH...158 AM. |White Lake...54 MPH...150 AM. |Owosso...53 MPH...1255 AM. |Downtown Detroit…

10. Nov 12, 2003High Wind, Sanilac$700,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    A strong low pressure system moved across the straits on the evening of the 12th, moving into Ontario overnight as it deepened to 974 mb. Strong cold advection and a tight pressure gradient over Lower Michigan produced wind gusts between 50 and 60 MPH across all of Southeast Michigan. In addition, there were even a few wind gusts reported between 60 and 88 mph. The highest wind gust was reported by a spotter in Dexter who recorded an 88 mph gust. An estimated 250,000 customers lost power in southeast Michigan, as widespread trees and power lines were blown down.

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

108°FJul 15, 1977

All-time low

−28°F2 times, most recently Feb 21, 2015

Warmest night

78°FAug 1, 2006

Coldest day

2°F2 times, most recently Feb 3, 1996

Wettest day

9.01 inSep 11, 1986

Snowiest day

12.0 in2 times, most recently Jan 14, 1979

Hottest year

2024mean 49.8°F

Coldest year

2009mean 44.8°F

Wettest year

198643.15 in

Driest year

201224.38 in

Snowiest season

68.4 in2008-09

Station Cass City 1 Ssw (USC00201361), 698 ft elevation, 25.1 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1961 to October 27, 2026; 87.9% 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 USC00201361.
• 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.
• Tsunamis NOAA NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database.
• 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.