NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Byron Center, MI
Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.
Data: NOAA NHC HURDAT2 and NOAA SPC tornado and hail reports, through 2025 · Updated
4 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of Byron Center, Michigan since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was an unnamed storm in 1941. Since 1950, 90 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 5 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 4
- Tornadoes
- 90
- EF3 or stronger
- 5
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
23 deaths in all
What the records show for Byron Center
None of the 4 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Byron Center; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 61 mph winds when its centre passed 21 miles away. The record near Byron Center begins with an unnamed storm in 1900; the most recent system was an unnamed storm in 1941, a tropical storm 13 miles away. None of the 4 systems has come since 2000. Of the 546 Michigan cities on this site, 52% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Byron Center. The strongest of the 90 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F5 on April 3, 1956; its path came within 11 miles, and it killed 17 people. Of the 90, 7 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 39 have come since 2000. May has had the most tornadoes, 19. The most recent tornado was on May 15, 2025. Byron Center has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 84% of the 546 Michigan cities. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 66 times since 1961, with stones up to 2 inches (hen egg size). Byron Center has more hail reports within 10 miles than 77% of the 546 Michigan cities.
Compare Byron Center's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Byron Center
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 13 mi | Tropical storm (47 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormSep 4 | 56 mi | Tropical storm (46 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 19 | 44 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 11 | 21 mi | Tropical storm (61 mph) | Category 4 |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Byron Center: a hurricane's worst winds sit within a few dozen miles of its centre, and inland cities are usually past that.
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Byron Center
By decade
- 2020s14
- 2010s12
- 2000s13
- 1990s6
- 1980s9
- 1970s14
- 1960s15(3 EF3+)
- 1950s7(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 1956 | F5 | 11 mi | 58.8 mi | 17 / 292 |
| Apr 11, 1965 | F4 | 18 mi | 20.6 mi | 5 / 142 |
| Apr 21, 1967 | F3 | 7 mi | 13.6 mi | 0 / 32 |
| Apr 11, 1965 | F3 | 24 mi | 14.1 mi | 0 / 5 |
| Apr 3, 1956 | F3 | 9 mi | 60.6 mi | 0 / 12 |
| Jun 19, 2009 | EF2 | 24 mi | 5.88 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 26, 1986 | F2 | 23 mi | 0.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 15, 1986 | F2 | 20 mi | 42.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 20, 1975 | F2 | 1 mi | 2.3 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jun 20, 1974 | F2 | 10 mi | 5.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 5, 1968 | F2 | 13 mi | 52.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 24, 1967 | F2 | 13 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 4 |
The strongest 12 of 90, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Byron Center
The Storm Prediction Center has 66 hail reports within 10 miles of Byron Center since 1961, made on 44 separate days. Of these, 32 were 1 inch across or larger, and one reached 2 inches. The largest, 2 inches (hen egg size), fell on July 20, 2003. The most recent report is from July 14, 2024. June has the most reports, 17.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Byron Center
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Grand Rapids, MI, 11 miles northeast of Byron Center at 778 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 83°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 31°F and 19°F. Highs reach 90°F on about 10 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 133 nights a year. Snowfall averages 77.6 inches a year, most of it in January. That 39.4 inches is more than at 121 of the 131 Michigan stations used on this site (92%). Dorr, 6 miles southwest, has its own station (Holland Tulip City Airport, MI): 35.0 inches a year, 4.4 less than here, and a July average high of 82°F against 83°F.
Water temperature at the NOAA tide station Holland, MI, 25 miles west, averaged 71°F in July and 34°F in February over 2021–2025. No month averaged 80°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in | Water °F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 31 | 19 | 2.5 | 7 | 22.6 | 34 |
| Feb | 34 | 20 | 2.1 | 6 | 17.2 | 34 |
| Mar | 45 | 27 | 2.4 | 6 | 7.6 | 38 |
| Apr | 58 | 37 | 4.0 | 8 | 2.0 | 48 |
| May | 70 | 49 | 4.0 | 8 | 0.0 | 55 |
| Jun | 79 | 58 | 3.9 | 6 | 0.0 | 65 |
| Jul | 83 | 63 | 3.9 | 6 | 0.0 | 71 |
| Aug | 81 | 61 | 3.6 | 6 | 0.0 | 70 |
| Sep | 74 | 53 | 3.4 | 6 | 0.0 | 68 |
| Oct | 61 | 42 | 4.0 | 8 | 0.3 | 59 |
| Nov | 47 | 33 | 3.1 | 7 | 7.1 | 49 |
| Dec | 36 | 25 | 2.5 | 7 | 20.8 | 37 |
| Year | 58 | 40 | 39.4 | 81 | 77.6 | 52 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Grand Rapids, MI (778 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals; water temperature: average of hourly readings 2021–2025 at the NOAA tide station Holland, MI, from NOAA Tides & Currents. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.
Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Byron Center
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 94 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Byron Center: 88 thunderstorm wind reports, 4 floods and 2 flash floods. They killed 2 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $7.7 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 100 mph, on August 20, 2016.
July 11, 2011: thunderstorm wind 1 mile from the centre of Byron Center — 1 killed, 1 injured, $5.0 million damage.
NWS: “m. m.”
May 17, 1999: thunderstorm wind 9 miles from the centre of Byron Center — 1 killed, 1 injured, $50,000 damage.
June 25, 2024: thunderstorm wind 6 miles from the centre of Byron Center — $500,000 damage.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, events whose starting point is on record, 1996 to June 30, 2026. Damage is the NWS estimate in the dollars of the year, not insured losses, and NWS notes that some reports are unverified.
Flood insurance claims, disaster declarations and FEMA risk ratings
Kent County, which includes Byron Center, has been named in 13 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 8 of them major disasters (by incident: 3 floods, 3 severe storms, 3 snowstorms, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on February 8, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Kent County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Very High for strong wind; Relatively High for tornadoes and inland flooding; Relatively Moderate for hail, lightning and heat waves; Very Low for hurricanes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $147.1 million a year, the 4th highest of 83 Michigan counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $89.1 million (61%), is from inland flooding.
Claims: FEMA, OpenFEMA Dataset FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims – v3, summed over ZIP codes; payments in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Declarations: Disaster Declarations Summaries – v2, by county. Retrieved October 25, 2026. 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).
Risk ratings: FEMA, National Risk Index county table, December 2025 (v1.20), retrieved October 26, 2026; ratings compare counties nationwide, are meant for planning and are no substitute for a local risk assessment. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets 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).
What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.