NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Marquette, 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
1 tropical system has passed within 75 miles of Marquette, Michigan since 1851, 0 of them at hurricane strength; the most recent was Cristobal in 2020. Since 1950, 4 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 1
- Tornadoes
- 4
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Marquette
None of the 1 tropical systems was at hurricane strength as it passed Marquette; the strongest was Cristobal in 2020, a tropical storm with 40 mph winds when its centre passed 29 miles away. Of the 546 Michigan cities on this site, 85% have more tropical storms and hurricanes within 75 miles than Marquette. The strongest of the 4 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F2 on May 6, 1964; its path came within 23 miles. The most recent tornado was on May 24, 2016. Of the 546 Michigan cities, 97% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Marquette. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 86 times since 1956, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Marquette has more hail reports within 10 miles than 84% of the 546 Michigan cities.
Compare Marquette's storm record with another city →
Tropical storms and hurricanes near Marquette
| Year | Storm | Closest | Strength when closest | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | CristobalJun 10 | 29 mi | Tropical storm (40 mph) | Tropical storm |
Strength is the sustained wind on the track at the closest point, which is not the wind felt in Marquette: 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 Marquette
By decade
- 2010s2
- 1980s1
- 1960s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 6, 1964 | F2 | 23 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 24, 2016 | EF1 | 18 mi | 3.87 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 11, 2011 | EF0 | 11 mi | 0.05 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 18, 1987 | F0 | 9 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 4 of 4, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Marquette
The Storm Prediction Center has 86 hail reports within 10 miles of Marquette since 1956, made on 35 separate days. Of these, 47 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 3 inches (tea cup size), was reported on 2 days, most recently June 20, 2007. The most recent report is from June 13, 2024. June has the most reports, 35.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Marquette
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Marquette, MI, 2 miles east of Marquette at 665 feet. August is the warmest, with an average high of 74°F and low of 58°F; January is the coolest, at 25°F and 12°F. October is the wettest at 3.4 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.5 inches; the year adds up to 30.2 inches over 73 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 3 days a year, almost all from July. Lows fall below freezing on about 153 nights a year. Snowfall averages 102.0 inches a year, most of it in January. That 30.2 inches is more than at 13 of the 131 Michigan stations used on this site (10%). Negaunee, 8 miles west, has its own station (Marquette, MI): 36.8 inches a year, 6.6 more than here, and the same August average high, 74°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 25 | 12 | 1.9 | 6 | 25.1 |
| Feb | 27 | 13 | 1.5 | 5 | 20.9 |
| Mar | 35 | 21 | 1.6 | 4 | 14.2 |
| Apr | 46 | 31 | 2.7 | 6 | 8.4 |
| May | 59 | 41 | 2.9 | 7 | 0.3 |
| Jun | 68 | 50 | 3.1 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 75 | 58 | 3.1 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 74 | 58 | 2.3 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 67 | 52 | 3.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 54 | 40 | 3.4 | 8 | 0.9 |
| Nov | 41 | 29 | 2.4 | 7 | 11.1 |
| Dec | 30 | 19 | 2.0 | 6 | 21.1 |
| Year | 50 | 35 | 30.2 | 73 | 102.0 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Marquette, MI (665 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 Marquette
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 101 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Marquette: 73 thunderstorm wind reports, 11 heavy rain events, 7 lightning strikes, 5 flash floods and 5 floods. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $1.7 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on April 10, 2017. September has had the most flash floods, 2 of 5. Of the 376 Michigan cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 280 have had fewer than Marquette.
April 13, 2026: flood 5 miles from the centre of Marquette — $638,000 damage.
NWS: “Emergency management reported multiple rivers and low lying areas were inundated by the combination of rain and snowmelt. In Gwinn, multiple roadways were inaccessible due to flooding on the Escanaba River by the 18th.”
April 28, 2013: flood 6 miles from the centre of Marquette — $625,000 damage.
NWS: “Rapid melting of significant late season snow pack caused minor to moderate flooding of some secondary roads across portions of Marquette County from the 28th into the 30th. Minor flooding continued into early May.”
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 Marquette's ZIP code 49855 have filed 17 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1979, and were paid $188,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. 6% 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, 40 have fewer than Marquette.
Marquette County, which includes Marquette, has been named in 11 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 5 of them major disasters (by incident: 3 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 Marquette County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively High for hail; Relatively Moderate for strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for inland flooding; Very Low for tornadoes, coastal flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $26.0 million a year, the 26th highest of 83 Michigan counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $8.0 million (31%), 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.