DETROIT – Before getting to the forecast I want to discuss something important about yesterday evening's storms.
Although I was not expecting much severe weather (and we didn't get any severe wind gusts or hail), two tornado warnings were issued between 7:00 and 7:30. The first thing that I want to explain is that these were what are called RADAR BASED WARNINGS. Doppler Radar allows us to see the wind inside of thunderstorms, and two storms were showing deep rotation and, hence, the potential to drop tornadoes.
The storm near the Lenawee/Washtenaw border that eventually passed north of Milan, in particular, showed very strong rotation. Fortunately, no tornadoes touched down, but this is NOT a failure or mistake on the part of the National Weather Service in issuing those tornado warnings. Rather, issuing warnings before a tornado touches down is our goal, and those warnings are issued for storms with strong potential to drop a twister. Not every storm with deep rotation will produce a tornado, of course, but this shouldn't delay you in any manner whatsoever from getting to your place of safety as quickly as possible when the warning is issued.
A second point I want to make is a very sensitive one for me. As is usual after a situation like last night, we received nasty emails from people upset with our extended tornado warning coverage on Local 4. I certainly respect that you want to watch your program. But we generally only do continuous coverage when there are tornado warnings. During severe thunderstorm warning situations, we do periodic updates and return you immediately to regular programming. When there are tornado warnings, whether it's a confirmed tornado on the ground or a storm capable of dropping a tornado at any moment, lives are potentially in danger. And not everybody gets our warning in that first minute that we're on the air. Some people don't initially know about the warning, get a phone call or a text message about it, and THEN they turn on Local 4 to get the latest. That's why we need to stay on the air -- EVERYBODY in the path of that tornado or potentially tornado-producing storm needs to get the message.
I want you to take a look as this photo (below) -- it's the aftermath from one of yesterday's devastating tornadoes that hit Illinois. Now let's say that tornado was in southeast Michigan. If somebody is going to tell me that they'd rather see Wheel of Fortune or Jeopardy, than see people in the path of a tornado get lifesaving information, then I have nothing more to say about this.
And before you tell me that these types of tornadoes don't happen here, you're wrong. Dead wrong. In fact, this weekend is the 50th anniversary of the Palm Sunday Tornado Outbreak, the third biggest in U.S. history, and the Michigan-Indiana-Ohio region was ground zero. Forty-seven tornadoes killed 271 people and injured 3,400 others.
And here's the part of this story that I consider one of the most stunning that I've ever heard in my entire career: two violent F4 tornadoes touched down within forty minutes of each other and took the exact same path through Branch, Hillsdale, and Lenawee Counties. The paths were so close that, according to reports received by the National Weather Service, anything not destroyed by the first tornado was taken out by the second one. At some points in the twisters' lives, the damage path was an astounding four miles wide. So yes, those really bad tornadoes do happen here, and we will continue providing the most comprehensive coverage of those storms on Local 4.
Alright, let's now get into some good news -- a nice weekend ahead!
But first, we'll have some showers this evening as a compact upper level disturbance crosses the area. Skies will quickly clear after the rain moves out, with lows in the mid to upper 30s. Wind will steadily diminish through the evening.
Expect a mostly sunny Saturday, with highs in the mid 50s and light wind.
Saturday's sunrise is at 7:00 AM, and Saturday's sunset is at 8:10 PM.
Mostly clear Saturday night, with lows in the mid 30s.
Mostly sunny on Sunday, although clouds will start increasing by late afternoon. Highs in the low 60s.
Becoming mostly cloudy Sunday night, with lows in the upper 40s.
Showers are likely on Monday, with highs in the low to mid 60s.
Becoming mostly clear Monday night, with lows in the upper 30s.
Mostly sunny on Tuesday, with highs in the low 60s.
Mostly clear Tuesday night, with lows near 40.
Mostly sunny on Wednesday, with highs in the low to mid 60s.
Mostly clear Wednesday night, with lows in the mid 40s.
Thursday becomes windy with scattered showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the low 60s.
Showers end Thursday night, with lows in the low to mid 40s.
Partly cloudy, windy and cooler on Friday, with some scattered showers possible. Highs in the mid 50s.