On Tuesday, Michiganders endured a range of severe weather conditions, including extreme heat with temperatures feeling like 100 degrees, violent thunderstorms that left approximately 350,000 homes and businesses without power, and tornado sirens.
"This level of instability is something we typically experience once or twice a year," Dave Kook, a National Weather Service meteorologist in White Lake Township, told the Free Press later in the day as he tracked the storms moving across the state. "And it’s here now."
In addition to the heat and storms, the weather service had warned earlier about the possibility of damaging wind gusts and quarter-sized hail due to the unusual summer weather pattern.
By 8 p.m., severe storms had disrupted power for nearly 153,000 Consumers Energy customers in northern Michigan and the Grand Rapids area. The utility committed to "working through the night" to restore service. Additionally, around 197,000 DTE Energy customers in southeast Michigan were affected.
DTE's online "storm update" stated that the utility was "working as quickly and safely as possible" to restore power. They also noted that hundreds of additional crew members were being brought in from outside the region to expedite the restoration process.
The power outages led to the closure of businesses, including grocery stores, and caused organizations such as Scout groups to cancel their evening meetings at churches and other public venues. Additionally, intersections, already hazardous due to heavy rain, were left without functioning traffic lights.
**More:** Corn sweat might be adding to the mugginess of the Midwest heatwave. Yes, corn sweat.
The good news is that most Michiganders appeared to be heeding the weather warnings, with some even managing to keep a sense of humor about the situation. Forecasters also noted that the intense heat in the state is not expected to persist much longer.
The weather service's heat advisory, which featured vivid yellow and red graphics on social media early Tuesday, recommended taking breaks in shaded areas while working, checking on the elderly, sick, and those without air conditioning, avoiding leaving children or pets in cars, and limiting strenuous outdoor activities.
No comments: