Unusually warm weather brings hail, lightning to Mid-Michigan

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The warm weather that moved through the area Monday night was a rarity, according to the National Weather Service in Grand Rapids.

Wayne Hoepner, National Weather Service meteorologist, said weather officials were paying close attention to upcoming storms Monday night, but did not expect the weather to reach Michigan.

“We can have these kinds of warm breaks, but usually the thunderstorms don’t get quite this far north,” Hoepner said. “We’re looking for them mainly in Indiana and Illinois, but they just happened to make it farther north.”

When the storms did reach Mount Pleasant, they came with hail.

“(Mount Pleasant) had a thunderstorm move through with some gusty winds. We may have had one funnel cloud sighted, maybe,” Hoepner said. “(The thunderstorms) should clear out … and maybe get a little snow before it stops.”

Monday’s high temperature was 55 degrees, while Tuesday’s was 54.

He said the warm front should clear out, but light snow is a possibility in the immediate future.

“The thunderstorms were there, and there was the potential (for a tornado last night),” Hoepner said.

Although Monday night’s storm failed to produce a tornado, the high winds and accompanying thunderstorms led to the significant power outage at Central Michigan University after lightning hit a substation.

“It was such a significant lightning strike,” said Mary Gust, spokeswoman for Consumers Energy.

Today’s forecast calls for a high near 36 degrees, with wind gusts reaching as high as 30 mph, according to the National Weather Service’s Web site.

news@cm-life.com