NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Traverse City, 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
No tropical storm or hurricane has passed within 75 miles of Traverse City, Michigan since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 27 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 27
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
2 deaths in all
What the records show for Traverse City
The strongest of the 27 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F4 on April 3, 1956; its path came within 9 miles, and it killed 1 person. The deadliest, an EF2 on October 18, 2007, killed 1 person. Of the 27, 2 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 7 have come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 8. The most recent tornado was on September 22, 2025. Of the 546 Michigan cities on this site, 81% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Traverse City. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 30 times since 1975, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Of the 546 Michigan cities, 59% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Traverse City.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Traverse City
By decade
- 2020s3
- 2010s2
- 2000s2
- 1990s6
- 1980s4
- 1970s5
- 1960s3(1 EF3+)
- 1950s2(1 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 1956 | F4 | 9 mi | 50.3 mi | 1 / 25 |
| Jun 26, 1969 | F3 | 2 mi | 6.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 18, 2007 | EF2 | 19 mi | 4.45 mi | 1 / 1 |
| Jul 31, 1977 | F2 | 25 mi | 19.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 23, 1976 | F2 | 22 mi | 3.3 mi | 0 / 5 |
| May 8, 1964 | F2 | 10 mi | 16.6 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 13, 1961 | F2 | 5 mi | 14.4 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 22, 2025 | EF1 | 24 mi | 0.85 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 31, 1998 | F1 | 19 mi | 7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 8, 1990 | F1 | 13 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 15, 1989 | F1 | 19 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Oct 15, 1989 | F1 | 24 mi | 12 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 27, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Traverse City
The Storm Prediction Center has 30 hail reports within 10 miles of Traverse City since 1975, made on 24 separate days. Of these, 19 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest size, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), was reported on 2 days, most recently June 21, 2025. The most recent report is from June 21, 2025. June has the most reports, 9.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Traverse City
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Traverse City Cherry Cptl Airport, MI, 2 miles south of Traverse City at 618 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 81°F and low of 59°F; January is the coolest, at 29°F and 17°F. October is the wettest at 3.6 inches of precipitation on average and February the driest at 1.0 inches; the year adds up to 29.2 inches over 68 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 9 days a year, almost all from June to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 149 nights a year. That 29.2 inches is more than at 3 of the 131 Michigan stations used on this site (2%). Grawn, 10 miles southwest, has its own station (Traverse City Munson, MI): 36.2 inches a year, 7.0 more than here, and a July average high of 79°F against 81°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 29 | 17 | 1.7 | 5 |
| Feb | 31 | 16 | 1.0 | 3 |
| Mar | 41 | 23 | 1.6 | 4 |
| Apr | 54 | 33 | 2.8 | 7 |
| May | 67 | 43 | 2.8 | 6 |
| Jun | 77 | 54 | 2.6 | 6 |
| Jul | 81 | 59 | 2.7 | 5 |
| Aug | 80 | 59 | 3.0 | 6 |
| Sep | 72 | 52 | 3.4 | 7 |
| Oct | 59 | 41 | 3.6 | 8 |
| Nov | 46 | 32 | 2.2 | 6 |
| Dec | 35 | 24 | 1.8 | 5 |
| Year | 56 | 38 | 29.2 | 68 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Traverse City Cherry Cptl Airport, MI (618 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 Traverse City
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 69 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Traverse City: 51 thunderstorm wind reports, 10 flash floods, 5 floods and 3 lightning strikes. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $15.6 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 75 mph, on July 30, 2002. June has had the most flash floods, 3 of 10. Of the 376 Michigan cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 343 have had fewer than Traverse City.
August 2, 2015: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Traverse City — $7.8 million damage.
NWS: “The most concentrated damage in Grand Traverse County occurred on the Old Mission Peninsula. Many trees were down, and multiple vineyards and orchards suffered substantial damage.”
August 2, 2015: thunderstorm wind 8 miles from the centre of Traverse City — $5.2 million damage.
October 6, 2012: flash flood 8 miles from the centre of Traverse City — $1.8 million 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
Flood insurance policyholders in Traverse City's 4 ZIP codes have filed 62 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1986, and were paid $1.1 million for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The most came from 2026-04-Flooding in 2026: 11 claims (18% of all) and $700,000. 26% 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, 112 have fewer than Traverse City.
| Event | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-04-Flooding2026 | 11 | $700,000 |
Grand Traverse County, which includes Traverse City, has been named in 6 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1977, 2 of them major disasters (by incident: 2 biological emergencies, 1 drought, 1 flood, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding, on June 30, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Grand Traverse County a Relatively 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 $31.2 million a year, the 20th highest of 83 Michigan counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $10.5 million (34%), 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 Traverse City
- Williamsburg, MI9 mi
- Grawn, MI10 mi
- Cedar, MI12 mi
- Elk Rapids, MI13 mi
- Lake Ann, MI13 mi
- Interlochen, MI14 mi
- Kingsley, MI15 mi
- Suttons Bay, MI16 mi
- Rapid City, MI16 mi
- Maple City, MI17 mi
- South Boardman, MI18 mi
- Buckley, MI18 mi
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