National Weather Service In Gaylord Confirms Tornado

Strong storms swept through Mid-Michigan Sunday as a cold front moved across the state.

The primary threat was wind, and thunderstorm wind gusts in excess of 60mph were recorded throughout Mid-Michigan.

The National Weather Service out of Gaylord has confirmed one tornado in Otsego County near Waters, Mich.

The damage indicates that it was an EF0 tornado, with peak wind estimates of 65-75mph. The tornado touched down around 4:30pm, just south of exit 270 along I-75. Numerous trees were blown over along the .3 mile long damage path. The path width was 150 yards.

The storm system that brought us Sunday's severe weather is moving farther away from us. It will remain windy for Monday, but the wind will weaken this evening.

Much cooler air is moving in throughout the day as well, firing up some lake effect snow showers.

November Tornado Outbreak Pounds The Midwest

At least eight people were killed as a result of Sunday's tornado outbreak in the Midwest.

Patty Thompson with the Central Office of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency confirmed that there have been six fatalities for the state and that there are likely over 100 injured, though that number is not yet official.

The Associated Press has reported two additional deaths in Michigan as a result of the storms.

Washington County, Ill., Coroner Mark Styninger told The Associated Press that an elderly man and his sister were killed around noon local time when a tornado hit their home in the rural community of New Minden in southern Illinois.

The AP also reported a third death occurred in New Minden while two other deaths occurred in Massac County, also in southern Illinois.

The New Minden tornado was preliminarily rated as an EF-4 (166 to 200 mph) on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, according to an initial survey by the National Weather Service Forecast Office in St. Louis.

At least 20 people were injured there, The AP reported. More than 30 people were injured around Nashville, Ill., WBBM-AM/FM reported.

Tornado touchdowns were reported Sunday in Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky.

At least 68 tornado reports have been received by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center, along with about 400 wind damage reports on Sunday.

A majority of the reports came from Indiana and Illinois, where AccuWeather.com meteorologists expected the worst storms to take shape.

"It had the best combination of instability; the sun came out several hours before the thunderstorms blew up," AccuWeather.com Senior Meteorologist Frank Strait said. "The wind shear was also favorable for tornadoes."

Based on photographs of some of the tornado touchdowns, the destruction looks "pretty serious," Strait said.

"It was what we thought there would be: big, violent-type tornadoes," Strait said

An apartment complex was severely damaged in Washington, Ill., according to the Peoria Journal Star. A shelter was established for those in need of a place to live for the time being.

The Central Illinois chapter of the American Red Cross was setting up additional shelters around Washington, the chapter said on its Twitter feed. Seven shelters had opened across Illinois, according to the Illinois Emergency Management Agency's website.

The Illinois National Guard said 10 firefighters from the 182nd Airlift Wing were deployed to Washington to aid with search and rescue efforts.

Another tornado was reported in the Chicago suburb of Frankfort, Ill.

At one point, more than 116,000 Ameren Illinois customers were without power Sunday afternoon as a result of the storms, according to the utility's website.

A state of emergency was declared by Mayor Greg Goodnight in Kokomo, Ind., where significant storm damage was reported.

High Severe Thunderstorm Risk for Midwest and Down The Mississippi Valley

Here is the simulated radar composite reflectivity forecast for 1pm EST, showing a very distinct arc of isolated supercell storms from S Michigan south through E Illinois, with convective initiation along the front as far south as NE Arkansas.

These supercells, especially from southern IL/KY north, will very likely be capable of producing long-track, violent tornadoes as they track through IN, southern MI..., OH, and even southern Ontario.

Farther south, in the Lower Mississippi River Valley, wind fields are forecast to be more unidirectional with height by the time storms develop Sunday afternoon, resulting in a more conditional tornado threat in the southern mode. Still though, any slight weakening or backing of the surface winds in the Lower MS River Valley would create an environment conduce for strong tornadoes as well. Stay tuned to local watches and warnings in the entire slight and moderate risk areas from the southern Great Lakes to AR/TN.

Snow to Accompany Arctic Blast Into the Great Lakes

The arctic blast headed to the Great Lakes will be accompanied by accumulating snow and the risk for icy spots.

A band of rain and snow pressing through the Great Lakes--in a northwest-to-southeast fashion--through Monday night will signify the arctic air's arrival.

The arctic blast will be strong enough for the rain to change to a general coating to an inch of snow in many communities.

Cities in line to be lightly whitened by the snow include Chicago, Ill., Grand Rapids, Mich., and Syracuse and Binghamton, N.Y.

In the wake of the initial band of rain and snow, places downwind of the Great Lakes will see more snow through Tuesday as the arctic invasion activates the lake-effect snow machine.

In the heaviest lake-effect snow bands, the potential exists for 6 to 12 inches to accumulate across the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and 3 to 6 inches elsewhere downwind of the Great Lakes.

Outside of the Great Lakes and central Appalachians, wet snowflakes are only expected to make an appearance and not accumulate along the I-95 corridor of the Northeast Monday night through Tuesday.

Snowflakes could even been seen in Charlotte, N.C., and Atlanta, Ga., Tuesday night as an inch or two of snow whitens the higher terrain of the southern Appalachians.

First Snowfall of the 2013-2014 Hits Southern Michigan

Here are the firs measurable snow totals of the 2013-2014 season.  Much of lower Michigan experienced it's first measurable snowfall on 11/11/13.  Winter appears to have come in early after a much cooler than normal summer.

Season's collide as a Warm Fall turns into a Cold Winter

Saginaw trace
West Bloomfield 0.1 inches...
Berkley 0.2 inches...
Mayville 0.2 inches...
Detroit Metro Airport 0.5 inches...
Peck 0.3 inches...
Flint 0.4 inches...
Garden City 0.4 inches...
Highland 0.5 inches...
Holly 0.5 inches...
Morenci 0.5 inches...
Pontiac 0.5 inches...
Fowlerville 0.6 inches...
NWS Detroit 0.6 inches...
Monroe 0.6 inches...
Grand Blanc 0.8 inches...

Early Record Snowstorm Hits Colorado up to South Dakota

A record-breaking storm that dumped 4 feet of snow in parts of western South Dakota left tens of thousands of people without electricity on Monday October 7th and ranchers bracing for heavy losses as they assess how many of their cattle died during the unseasonably early blizzard.

The weekend storm was part of a powerful weather system that also buried parts of  Wyoming and Colorado with snow, and spawned destructive tornadoes in Nebraska and Iowa. At least four deaths were attributed to the weather, including a South Dakota man who collapsed while cleaning snow off his roof.

Cattle ranchers throughout western South Dakota were reporting losing between 20 percent and 50 percent of their herds, and early estimates suggest the region may have lost 5 percent or more of its cattle, said Silvia Christen, executive director of the South Dakota Stockgrowers Association.

Christen said the storm not only killed calves that were due to be sold soon, but also cows that would produce next year's calves.

"This is from an economic standpoint something we're going to feel for a couple of years," Christen said.

National Guard troops were helping utility crews pull equipment through the heavy, wet snow to install new electricity poles in western South Dakota, where more than 22,000 homes and businesses remained without power Monday afternoon, according to utility companies.

At least 1,600 poles were toppled in the northwest part of the state alone, and workers are expecting to find more as they make their way into rural prairie areas, Grand River Electric Coop spokeswoman Tally Seim said.

"We've got guys flying over our territory, counting as they go. We're finding more as we are able to access the roads. The roads have been pretty blocked on these rural country roads," Seim said.

"One of our biggest challenges is getting access to areas that are still snowed in," added Vance Crocker, vice president of operations for Black Hills Power, whose crews were being hampered by rugged terrain in the Black Hills region. "Safety is our No. 1 concern for both our customers and employees working in this treacherous terrain."

In Rapid City, where a record-breaking 23 inches of snow fell, travel was slowly getting back to normal.

The Rapid City airport and all major roadways in the region had reopened by Monday. The city's streets also were being cleared, but residents were being asked to stay home so crews could clear downed power lines and tree branches, and snow from roadsides.

"It's a pretty day outside. There's a lot of debris, but we're working to clear that debris," said Calen Maningas, a Rapid City firefighter working in the Pennington County Emergency Operations Center.

Still, schools across the region were closed, along with many public offices.

Cleanup also continued after nine tornadoes hit northeast Nebraska and northwest Iowa on Friday, injuring at least 15 people and destroying several homes and businesses. Authorities also are blaming the weather for a car accident that killed three people along a slick, snow-covered road in Nebraska.

In South Dakota, the 19 inches of snow that fell in Rapid City on Friday broke the city's 94-year-old one-day snowfall record for October by about 9 inches, according to the National Weather Service. The city also set a record for snowfall in October, with a total of 23.1 inches during the storm. The previous record was 15.1 inches in October 1919.

Temperatures in the Rapid City area were expected to warm into the 60s on Monday to continue melting the heavy snow, according to the National Weather Service.

Low and possibly mid 90's on the way for next week

NORTHERN MICHIGAN -- We set the table for another dry and warm weekend before some real heat gets in here next week. In fact, it looks like the hottest temperatures of the year will arrive early/mid part of next week.

High pressure has been in control of our weather since late Wednesday leading to warm sunny days and cool crisp nights. That will remain the case Friday into our weekend although winds will return southerly which will start to warm things up even more and by late weekend, start to pump back the muggy conditions northward into the Upper Great Lakes.

There will be no rain across the region this weekend into Monday for that matter. There is a cold front that will attempt to work in, but it will stall out and get hung up across Minnesota and not make it any further. That will be the closest any thunderstorms will come. Temperatures Saturday will be in the low/mid-80's with mid-80's on Sunday.

The real heat gets in here starting Monday as the heat will build into the middle part of the week. Daytime highs Monday will be in the upper-80's/low-90's with low and even mid-90's possible in places Tuesday into Wednesday. It will be much cooler right along the immediate shoreline of the Great Lakes. The humidity will also climb with dew points getting close to 70F next week allowing the heat index to perhaps crack 100F (what it will feel like).

The best shot at any thunderstorms will hold off until next Thursday when these is some consensus that a cold front will arrive.