Shiawassee County, Michigan severe weather history spans 305 recorded events between 1955 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 65.9% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,756 nationally and #26 in Michigan.
305
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
17
Direct injuries
$23.7M
Property damage
The record
What the Shiawassee County, Michigan severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Shiawassee County, Michigan severe weather history averages 4.3 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 107 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 46 events fall before 1990 and 259 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $17.9M in reported property damage. In total, 6 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Shiawassee County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 201 | 0 | $1.6M | 77 | 1955–2026 |
| Hail | 55 | 0 | $2.8M | 1.75 | 1967–2023 |
| Tornado | 35 | 0 | $17.9M | F4 | 1956–2026 |
| Lightning | 7 | 0 | $260K | 0 | 1998–2024 |
| Flood | 4 | 0 | $50K | 0 | 2008–2020 |
| Flash Flood | 3 | 0 | $1.1M | 0 | 2007–2012 |
Decade by decade
Shiawassee County, Michigan severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
34 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 28 touched down inside it and 6 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1965-04-11 | EF4 | 1 | 8 | 21.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2007-10-18 | EF2 | 2 | 1 | 19.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2019-03-14 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 18.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1986-04-28 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 26.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1978-08-19 | EF2 | 0 | 8 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1976-04-21 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1975-08-29 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1967-04-16 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1957-09-21 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 21.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1951-08-15 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 28.5 mi | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Shiawassee County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 19, 1978 | Tornado | 0 | 8 | $250K | |
| Jun 2, 1971 | Tornado | 0 | 3 | $250K | |
| Oct 19, 2007 | Tornado | PERRY | 0 | 1 | $400K |
| Sep 21, 2001 | Lightning | PERRY | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Apr 2, 1977 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $25K | |
| Apr 21, 1976 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $2.5M | |
| Apr 17, 1967 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $250K | |
| May 12, 1956 | 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
The tornado touched down around the intersection of Britton Rd and I-69 and produced EF-0 damage up to Bancroft Rd and Newburg Rd with large tree limbs downed and trees snapped. Shoreline Lake Condos had over 10 trailers and mobile homes damaged from falling trees. The tornado continued northeast from Bancroft Rd/Newburg Rd to M-71 just ESE of Vernon producing EF-2 damage. One roof was completely taken off, a second story wall collapsed, and numerous homes with wall damage. The tornado weakened back down to EF-1 as two more home damaged near Bennington Rd Reed Rd. The tornado finally lifted near Riniel Rd just south of Lytle Rd.
Large hail hammered areas in a 3 mile radius around Durand for 50 minutes. The hail, at times, was as big as golf balls. A local newspaper reported $1.8M in hail damages to homes alone. Hundreds of vehicles also took a beating. Local experts estimated damages at an average of $4K per vehicle. This information was used to estimate $1M in total damages to vehicles. Many crops in the area were also destroyed. One farmer estimated $400K in losses to soybeans alone. Total crop damages were estimated at a conservative $2M, bringing the total cost of this hailstorm to nearly $5M.
The tornado touched down three miles west of Perry around Beardslee Rd, just south of W. Britton Rd, and initially traveled through Ruess Rd and Boulder Ln, where downed trees and fallen large tree limbs were observed. The tornado then intensified as it entered into the city of Perry. Damage located around the intersection of Polly St and Lamb St and southeast into the intersection of 2nd St and Washington St consisted of large uprooted trees, sheared large tree limbs, major roofing damage to several outbuildings, and shingle/siding damaging to some residential homes. These locations observed a peak wind around 95 mph with a tornado width around 430 yards. The tornado then weakened while entering the vicinity of Washington and 2nd St |where downed large tree limbs were observed, before lifting just east of this location.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
67,991
Population (ACS)
$172K
Median home value
14
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 |
| Jun 30, 2004 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jan 10, 2001 | Snowstorm | SNOW | EM |
| Jun 24, 1998 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Shiawassee County, Michigan?
305 events are on record between 1955 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths and $23.7M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Shiawassee County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 201 recorded events — 65.9% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Shiawassee County?
34 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 28 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Shiawassee County?
14 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Shiawassee County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Shiawassee County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Shiawassee County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 62 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Shiawassee 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
- Schoolcraft County 94
- Tuscola County 338
- Sanilac County 241
- Van Buren County 281
- St. Joseph County 363
- Washtenaw County 828
Cite this page
“Shiawassee County, Michigan.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/michigan/shiawassee-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.