- Southeast Michigan Tornado Outbreak
The Southeast Michigan Tornado Outbreak occurred on
July 2 ,1997 in the built-up area ofDetroit, Michigan . There were 13 tornadoes in total, 3 dragged through neighborhoods and downtown, hitting northern Detroit between I-96 andEight Mile Road , Hamtramck and Highland Park [ [http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/ WJBK-TV 2, Detroit, MI] ] . The storms killed 7, caused localflooding , and destroyed houses. 5 of the fatalities were recorded inGrosse Pointe Farms, Michigan due to straight-line winds of up to 100 mph that blew a gazebo full of people intoLake St. Clair . [ [http://www.crh.noaa.gov/dtx/climate/1997.php 1997: The Year in Review ] ] One tornado formed east of theDetroit River , in Essex County,Ontario nearWindsor, Ontario and caused damage in Windsor and Essex County. The strongesttornado was listed as an F3. [ [http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/myfox/pages/ContentDetail?contentId=2802418 WJBK-TV 2, Detroit, MI] ]Aftermath
Later that evening and the next day, the local television stations (such as
WJBK ,WDIV-TV , andWXYZ-TV ) displayed video and images ofdowntown Detroit. One particular image showed the central tower of theRenaissance Center , with nearly every singleglass window blown out from the winds and debris of the storm. Similar results were found at many of the neighbouring towers and office buildings.The temperatures on
July 2 were very high, around convert|90|F|C|0, with a heat index close to convert|104|F|C|0. After the storm passed, the temperatures dropped to convert|70|F|C|0.For the next 6 to 8 hours, there were still thunderstorms rolling and rumbling through, and many people were afraid of further tornadic activity, especially since two-thirds of the City of Windsor were without power until the next morning. Many large trees were felled by the storm's winds as well.
Tecumseh Road viaduct
The effects on the
Tecumseh Road viaduct on the west end ofWindsor, Ontario were quite overwhelming, however. The steel girder viaduct was built in 1944, and was just two-lanes, going under theCN Rail line that leads to theMichigan Central Railway Tunnel . The storms associated with the tornado outbreak dumped such a large amount of rain and floodwaters, that the viaduct was flooded up to the height of a car's roof, as one automobile was submerged (The driver was unharmed, however).Since this viaduct was a well-known traffic bottleneck (even more so for
transport truck s, since the viaduct was so low, it would peel the roof off their trailers), and would flood with around a foot of water from even a light rain, that it was completely closed, torn down, and rebuilt in August 1998, and finished 2 weeks ahead of schedule, and 2 million dollars under budget. The new underpass is built ofconcrete , is four lanes wide, and is designed to handle the largest of transport trucks.Other tornadoes
The Michigan tornado outbreak of July 2 was part of a larger outbreak stemming from a storm system that crossed the eastern part of
North America from July 1 to July 3, 1997. On July 1, several tornadoes touched down across western and northernMinnesota north of theTwin Cities Metropolitan Area of Minneapolis and St. Paul. On July 3, several tornadoes touched down from easternNew York to southernNew Hampshire . No other fatalities were reported outside of Michigan. In total, 52 tornadoes touched from northeasternKansas toNew England during the three-day event.Tornado table
Confirmed tornadoes
July 1 event
See also
*
List of Canadian Tornadoes
*List of North American tornadoes and tornado outbreaks
*List of tornadoes striking downtown areas Sources
*
WDIV-TV , NBC 4 Detroit,Michigan
*CBET-TV , CBC 9 Windsor,Ontario References
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