(Source: MIRS.news, Published 08/29/2023) Seven tornados ranging from EF0 to EF2 blew through Michigan Aug. 24, knocking out power to 134,000 DTE and Consumers Energy customers.
WWMT Chief Meteorologist Keith Thompson said going back to 1950, the record for the number of tornados in one day was 19, which was set in May 2001. While it may not be a record overall, he said it could be close to the number in one day for August.
"It certainly is odd and uncommon that we would have this many tornadoes at this time of year as opposed to let's say maybe April, May or even June, which is when, historically, we're more likely to see those kinds of outbreaks," Thompson said.
He said the catalyst for the storm was the intense heat that was well into the 100s. The 81-degree Fahrenheit dew point tied for the hottest dew point on record going back to the 1800s. The other 81-degree dew point happened in 1995 and 700 people died in Chicago because of it.
"That really set the table, just that intense heat, and then we had a cold front come through and the potency of that frontal boundary is a little uncommon for this time of year, so that's what sort of created the scenario that we had. We had an explosive atmosphere," he said.
He said the strength of the tornadoes in the state was "stereotypical" for the state. The National Weather Service states the strength of tornadoes is determined by the Enhanced Fujita Scale, which measures the estimated wind speed and related damage caused by a tornado.
Thompson said the largest tornado in the state was an EF5 tornado that damaged Flint in 1953 and was still considered one of the deadliest tornadoes in U.S. history.
He said the "rapid spin-up" EF0 to EF2 tornadoes are typical in the state, but can still be deadly and do damage as seen last Thursday.
"They are somewhat unpredictable. By the time we see them on the radar, they might already be on the ground," Thompson said. "These are not the tornadoes of the Plains that are well advertised, and you can see them well in advance."
He pointed to the crash on Interstate 96 near Webberville as evidence of the damage they can do.
Thompson said as storms rip through densely populated areas, the power goes out. Straight-line winds can blow through at 70 to 80 mph or more, which is the same power as an EF0 tornado without the spin and causes widespread damage. Ice storms and blizzards knock out power.
The Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) has the past four years of outages recorded for the state and available online.
In 2021, nearly 1.5 million Consumers Energy, DTE and Indiana & Michigan Power customers lost power when massive storms swept through the state over the course of two days in August.
Altogether, 17 power outage events were recorded that year, with DTE a part of 12, Consumers 10, Indiana & Michigan Power three, Upper Peninsula Power Company one and Northern States Power Company with one.
There were 18 power-outage events in 2020, which was the most in the four years. That year also had the most spread-out storm event, with nearly 500,000 customers losing power across Consumers, DTE, Upper Peninsula Power Company and Indiana & Michigan Power.
There were 16 events in 2019 with the largest being during a July 19 storm that knocked out power to over 634,000 DTE and Consumers customers.
There were 13 events in 2022 with the largest being 462,000 between Consumers and DTE during a storm Aug. 29.
So far in 2023 there have been eight power outage events, with the largest being an ice storm in February that shut down power to nearly 1.4 million Michiganders.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's Press Secretary Stacey LaRouche said the 2024 budget included $43 million going toward enhancing the resiliency of the energy grid in the state.
"Michiganders should be able to count on their utilities to keep the lights and heat on. We are grateful for the line workers and first responders who have been working around the clock to get the power back on and keep Michiganders safe," LaRouche said.
She said the MPSC has worked to hold utilities accountable.
Office of Attorney General Spokesperson Danny Wimmer said that Attorney General Dana Nessel had been taking an active role in working with the MPSC to fix the state's power grid, which is rated 46 out of the 50 states, according to a 2022 report from the Citizens Utility Board.
"Attorney General Nessel is fighting to get Michigan's utility reliability into the top quartile of the nation and to implement effective performance metrics that will provide customers with readily available and accessible reliability performance charts so they may compare their utility service to others in the state and nation," Wimmer said.
He pointed to Nessel's involvement in the MPSC cases against DTE and Consumers Energy, as well as her fight to get automatic credits for customers facing long outages.
He also pointed to several litigations against the power companies in several MPSC electric rate cases that would address the reliability of Michigan's energy grid.
"Attorney General Nessel has been engaging with the Commission on this topic for years. The Commission is the decision maker in these cases and is the agency that creates rules and regulations on service reliability," Wimmer said.
He said she has also been working with the Legislature on bills that would harden the grid quicker, but the four bills from 2022 did not make it through.
"The Attorney General is working to implement effective performance metrics to properly gauge utility performance and a plan to penalize utilities that fail to meet progressive performance goals," Wimmer said.
As for the rest of the year, Thompson said the outlook for extreme weather was unclear, because the farther out you go with weather, which is not climate, the harder it is to predict. He couldn't say if there would be another outbreak later in September or October.
"You never say never in weather," Thompson said.
