NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit East Tawas, 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
6 tropical systems have passed within 75 miles of East Tawas, Michigan since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Connie in 1955. Since 1950, 27 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 6
- Tornadoes
- 27
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
5 deaths in all
What the records show for East Tawas
None of the 6 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed East Tawas; the strongest was an unnamed storm in 1900, a tropical storm with 64 mph winds when its centre passed 54 miles away. The record near East Tawas begins with an unnamed storm in 1892; the most recent system was Connie in 1955, a tropical storm 14 miles away. None of the 6 systems has come since 2000. East Tawas has more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than 76% of the 546 Michigan cities on this site. The highest rating among the 27 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 3 times; the most recent, on March 27, 1991, came within 12 miles. The deadliest, an F2 on June 8, 1953, killed 4 people. Of the 27, one had a path within 5 miles of the city centre, and 5 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 8. The most recent tornado was on August 28, 2018. Of the 546 Michigan cities, 81% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than East Tawas. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 40 times since 1974, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). East Tawas has more hail reports within 10 miles than 57% of the 546 Michigan cities.
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Tropical storms and hurricanes near East Tawas
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | ConnieAug 14 | 14 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1941 | Unnamed 1941 stormSep 25 | 5 mi | Tropical storm (55 mph) | Category 3 |
| 1932 | Unnamed 1932 stormSep 4 | 65 mi | Tropical storm (51 mph) | Category 1 |
| 1923 | Unnamed 1923 stormOct 19 | 11 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
| 1900 | Unnamed 1900 stormSep 12 | 54 mi | Tropical storm (64 mph) | Category 4 |
| 1892 | Unnamed 1892 stormSep 14 | 70 mi | Tropical storm (58 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in East Tawas: 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 East Tawas
By decade
- 2010s5
- 1990s7(2 EF3+)
- 1980s5
- 1970s7(1 EF3+)
- 1950s3
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 30, 1976 | F3 | 22 mi | 6.4 mi | 1 / 7 |
| Mar 27, 1991 | F3 | 21 mi | 21 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Mar 27, 1991 | F3 | 12 mi | 35 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 8, 1953 | F2 | 3 mi | 16.6 mi | 4 / 13 |
| Apr 24, 1993 | F2 | 23 mi | 7 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Jul 4, 1977 | F2 | 22 mi | 2.5 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Mar 30, 1976 | F2 | 21 mi | 4.9 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 12, 1974 | F2 | 25 mi | 0.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 28, 2018 | EF1 | 24 mi | 0.92 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 8, 2015 | EF1 | 23 mi | 8.93 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 17, 2014 | EF1 | 16 mi | 1.58 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 3, 1999 | F1 | 24 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 2 |
The strongest 12 of 27, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in East Tawas
The Storm Prediction Center has 40 hail reports within 10 miles of East Tawas since 1974, made on 31 separate days. Of these, 18 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on June 30, 2004. The most recent report is from May 27, 2018. May has the most reports, 13.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in East Tawas
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is E Tawas, MI, 4 miles south of East Tawas at 586 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 80°F and low of 58°F; January is the coolest, at 30°F and 13°F. April is the wettest at 3.4 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.8 inches; the year adds up to 32.3 inches over 71 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 5 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 157 nights a year. Snowfall averages 49.2 inches a year, most of it in January. That 32.3 inches is more than at 35 of the 131 Michigan stations used on this site (27%). Hale, 18 miles west, has its own station (Hale Loud Dam, MI): 32.7 inches a year, 0.4 more than here, and a July average high of 81°F against 80°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 30 | 13 | 2.1 | 6 | 14.3 |
| Feb | 32 | 13 | 1.8 | 5 | 12.4 |
| Mar | 41 | 21 | 1.9 | 5 | 7.2 |
| Apr | 52 | 32 | 3.4 | 6 | 2.9 |
| May | 65 | 44 | 3.2 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 75 | 53 | 3.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 80 | 58 | 3.1 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 79 | 57 | 3.0 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 72 | 49 | 2.9 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 59 | 38 | 3.0 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Nov | 46 | 29 | 2.5 | 6 | 2.6 |
| Dec | 35 | 21 | 2.1 | 6 | 9.7 |
| Year | 55 | 36 | 32.3 | 71 | 49.2 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at E Tawas, MI (586 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. 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 East Tawas
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 28 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of East Tawas: 26 thunderstorm wind reports and 2 lightning strikes. They killed 0 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $135,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 71 mph, on July 9, 2006.
July 5, 2007: lightning strike 5 miles from the centre of East Tawas — 2 injured.
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
Flood insurance policyholders in East Tawas's ZIP code 48730 have filed 30 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1985, and were paid $373,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 17% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 160 Michigan cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 69 have fewer than East Tawas.
Iosco County, which includes East Tawas, has been named in 11 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1972, 6 of them major disasters (by incident: 4 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 snowstorms, 1 drought). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on June 30, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Iosco County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail and inland flooding; Very Low for hurricanes, coastal flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $8.3 million a year, the 58th highest of 83 Michigan counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $5.1 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.
Cities near East Tawas
- Tawas City, MI7 mi
- Oscoda, MI8 mi
- Hale, MI18 mi
- Au Gres, MI21 mi
- Harrisville, MI24 mi
- Prescott, MI27 mi
- Sterling, MI32 mi
- Port Austin, MI32 mi
- Standish, MI33 mi
- Hubbard Lake, MI35 mi
- Pigeon, MI35 mi
- Alger, MI35 mi
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