Are the Number of Tornadoes in Michigan on the Rise?

It feels like Michigan has really ramped up in severe weather as of late. This year alone, in southwest Michigan, multiple tornadoes have been reported moving through communities, and they seem to be getting worse.

But is Michigan actually seeing an increase in the number of tornadoes, or is it just perception based on where we live?

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2024's Wild Weather in SW Michigan

The state of Michigan averages about 15 or 16 tornadoes every year. The dichotomy of cold, Canadian air, mixing with warm, southern air, and a source of humidity to our west in Lake Michigan makes for some interesting weather phenomenon that occur in west Michigan especially. This includes the occasional severe thunderstorm.

2024, though, feels worse than normal.

This past May, two tornadoes were confirmed in Kalamazoo County, and in St. Joseph and Branch Counties. The later of the two was mostly over open land, however some smaller communities and townships saw some minor damage, and small buildings destroyed. This storm, however, did prompt the state's first EVER reported Tornado emergency as the storm had a dangerous funnel confirmed on the ground, headed toward a highly populated area - Sherwood and Union City.

The other, an EF-2, went right through Portage, and caused millions of dollars in damage, including destroying a Fed Ex facility that had employees temporarily trapped inside.

Then, this week, more severe storms, coming out of Calhoun County, resulted in a number of new tornado warnings, and produced yet another confirmed EF-2 tornado in St. Joseph County, just north of Three Rivers.

Three Tornadoes in less than three months in the same area is pretty crazy for Michigan, right? And that's just a small portion of the state.

Actual Number of Tornadoes in Michigan

Turns out, no. The only area that has seen tornado warnings with confirmed tornadoes on the ground has been these three storms in southwest Michigan. Since January, these three tornadoes are the ONLY three to have been reported across the entire state - keeping in mind, the state usually sees 15-16 tornadoes every year.

So actually, this has been a VERY down year for tornadoes in Michigan, granted, we still have several months left in the year, AND, we still have the possibility of some late storms in the early fall when cold and warm air will mix again over the state.

The Most Tornadoes in One Year in Michigan

In the past few years, Michigan has actually stayed pretty close to its yearly average in terms of the number of tornadoes produced and confirmed. But the most ever seen in one year was 1974, which saw 43 confirmed tornadoes, and injured 51 people, causing more than $5 million in damage.

In fact, there were three very rare tornadoes in the Upper Peninsula that year near Escanaba and Felch.

So while it seems severe weather is on the rise, and tornado numbers are going up in Michigan, this year is NOT the example to use, despite the fact that we've now has three in very close proximity in a short amount of time.

Still, though, you should have your tornado precautions in place, despite how few we've had this year. Mother nature still technically has some catching up to hit her average for the year.