Delta County, Michigan severe weather history spans 271 recorded events between 1957 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 46.5% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,957 nationally and #31 in Michigan.
271
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
5
Direct injuries
$5.0M
Property damage
The record
What the Delta County, Michigan severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Delta County, Michigan severe weather history averages 3.9 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 95 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 32 events fall before 1990 and 239 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $3.0M in reported property damage. In total, 8 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Delta County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 126 | 0 | $1.1M | 100 | 1957–2025 |
| Hail | 89 | 0 | $19K | 2.5 | 1981–2020 |
| Heavy Rain | 23 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2005–2021 |
| Tornado | 11 | 0 | $3.0M | F3 | 1968–2020 |
| Funnel Cloud | 7 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–2013 |
| Flash Flood | 6 | 0 | $5K | 0 | 2002–2010 |
| Flood | 6 | 0 | $665K | 0 | 1996–2026 |
| Lightning | 3 | 0 | $230K | 0 | 2020–2025 |
Decade by decade
Delta County, Michigan severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
10 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 9 touched down inside it and 1 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987-07-11 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 71.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1992-07-19 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1972-07-20 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 0.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2020-08-31 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1998-06-25 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1997-10-05 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1974-07-14 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 5.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1968-08-16 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2008-07-25 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-07-11 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Delta County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 18, 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | CORNELL | 0 | 2 | $400K |
| Jul 20, 1992 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $2.5M | |
| Jul 20, 1972 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $250K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
County emergency management reported Delta County Airport closed on the 13th due to water over the runways. Power was cut to the VOR facility and water was at least 3 feet deep. At least 4 roads in the city of Escanaba were closed on the 13th. In Rapid River, water over the road closed the US-41 and US-2 intersection. A culvert washout closed County Road 503 in Bay De Noc Township from the 16th to the 17th. Water over the road on County Road 497/GG in Nahma caused the road to be closed from the 17th to the 27th. Drone footage along the Ford River provided by the emergency manager highlighted multiple structures threated, surrounded, or inundated by high water. County emergency manager estimates private property damages around 300 Thousand $USD and the public damages at approximately 250 Thousand $USD.
An unusual low-topped supercell with no lightning produced a brief spin-up of an EF-1 tornado west of Escanaba. The rotating wall cloud and lowering funnel were observed by travelers on Highway US-2 as the tornado initially touched down near Pete's Pick and Pull Auto Parts snapping and knocking down several trees and utility poles. A couple of trees fell on one residence in this vicinity. The tornado then crossed US-2 moving northeastward as it caused extensive damage to to several storage units at Pine Ridge Storage. The tornado continued northeastward into a wooded area where hundreds of trees were snapped and uprooted. As the thunderstorm collapsed the damage evolved into downburst wind damage at the end of its path. The tornado only lasted two minutes.
Escanaba Public Safety investigator confirmed a lightning strike started a fire causing severe damage at the Bonifas Arts Center and Theater. The theater suffered heavy fire and water damage, with an estimated 6 to 9 months of closure. The arts center was closed for approximately two months.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
36,813
Population (ACS)
$157K
Median home value
6
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 27, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Sep 7, 2005 | Hurricane | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM |
| May 10, 1994 | Freezing | SEVERE DEEP FREEZE | DR |
| Jan 27, 1978 | Snowstorm | BLIZZARDS & SNOWSTORMS | EM |
| Mar 2, 1977 | Drought | DROUGHT | EM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Delta County, Michigan?
271 events are on record between 1957 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $5.0M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Delta County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 126 recorded events — 46.5% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Delta County?
10 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 9 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Delta County?
6 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Delta County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Delta County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Delta County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 53 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Delta County, Michigan severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Crawford County 122
- Dickinson County 248
- Clinton County 255
- Eaton County 230
- Clare County 125
- Emmet County 84
Cite this page
“Delta County, Michigan.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/michigan/delta-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.