The tornado that landed in Gaylord on Friday was EF3 with winds reaching 150 mph, causing two deaths and 44 injuries, according to officials and the National Weather Service.
Earlier, the meteorological service specified a maximum wind speed of 140 mph.
The Twister ranks 16th in injuries and 21st in deaths in Michigan since 1950, according to the Meteorological Service.
The last tornado, which caused more injuries than Friday’s Gaylord tornado, was on July 2, 1997 in Highland Park, when a F2 tornado injured 90 people, said Jim Caesar, a meteorologist with the Gaylord National Weather Service.
There have been a total of seven deaths in Michigan as a result of a tornado since 1990, Caesar said.
“Among the seven, this is only the second time in 32 years that there have been multiple deaths from a tornado,” he said. “It’s pretty rare.”
MORE: The number of victims of the Gaylord tornado is two, 44 people were injured
Gilchrist investigates the damage
Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II flew to Gaylord on Saturday afternoon to investigate some of the damage to the city before visiting the emergency command center set up by local authorities.
At a press conference around 4:30 pm, Gilchrist expressed his gratitude for all the work done by the Gaylord First Aid Service over the past 24 hours, and said he and Governor Whitmer “are praying for every soul that has been affected.” ”
“Two michiganders we know lost their lives in this tornado. We want everyone to know that everyone in Michigan will embrace these families, “he said from the department at Kirtland College, wearing dark jeans and a blue button-down shirt.
Gilchrist noted that Friday’s storm covered a lot of land and caused widespread damage to both residential and commercial areas, saying it was important for everyone to try to cover the scale of the devastation.
The vice-governor reiterated the state’s commitment to ensuring that everyone in the region receives all the necessary resources. He said staff were working hard to restore power and internet, and also reminded affected residents to call 911 in case of an emergency.
In some areas, they have begun to see the return of their power, according to Michigan State Police. Lieutenant Derrick Carroll, who was also present at the press conference. He said interruptions in the area were initially around 34%, but were reduced to 21% by Saturday night. Many street lamps on the main road in Gaylord were turned on again by Saturday afternoon.
According to Carol, the death toll from Friday’s storm remains at two. He said they would not provide the number of missing persons, as the number is steadily increasing.
“What is happening is that we will find someone, but then we will get another phone call from relatives, and another, and another,” he explained.
Carol said the Red Cross has received a huge amount of donations and encouraged anyone who needs food, water and other supplies such as baby diapers to go to E-Free Church in Gaylord, where a shelter has been set up.
Statistical “coincidence”
Caesar said deaths and injuries were rare during a tornado in Michigan.
“The state of Michigan is generally not getting as many tornadoes as other parts of the country,” Caesar said. “And then statistically, in order to receive injuries and / or deaths normally, these tornadoes have to pass through populated areas.
“So the tornado that happened to hit the western parts of Gaylord – a mile west, for example, probably hardly affects anyone. So part of it is kind of statistically just a coincidence that happens to hit a populated center. And it just doesn’t happen that often. “
The last tornado, which caused more injuries than Friday’s Gaylord tornado, was on July 2, 1997 in Highland Park, when a F2 tornado injured 90 people, Caesar said.
There have been a total of seven deaths in Michigan as a result of a tornado since 1990, Caesar said.
“Among the seven, this is only the second time in 32 years that there have been multiple deaths from a tornado,” he said. “It’s pretty rare.”
The state has an average of about 15 tornadoes a year, according to the National Weather Service.
“Most tornadoes don’t kill at all,” Caesar said. “If you look at the historical database, we go through many, many years, sometimes decades, without seeing a tornado death. Two would put him in the top 25 of tornado events in the last 70 plus years in the state in terms of deaths. So that’s still a bit of an impressively rare number, given the number of tornadoes that happen. “
The incident is even rarer for County Now, Caesar said, looking at tornado data tracked by the meteorological service since the 1950s.
“This is the fifth tornado ever recorded in the county since 1950, but the other four have not actually affected Gaylord,” he said. “There are five that have at least touched somewhere in the county or in the last 70 years, but the first has actually affected the most populous center, which is Gaylord.
Two people in their 70s were reported dead in a mobile home park in Nottingham Forest. One was found dead and the other later died, police said.
“The two deaths, for example, at this event in Gaylord, happened in this trailer park, and it’s just a function of those structures that just aren’t very good at withstanding strong winds,” Caesar said. “They’re just not very good, so they tend to throw around a lot, and unfortunately, we tend to see more deaths in these kinds of situations when a tornado hits areas like these.”
Residents had few warnings
According to Accuweather, meteorologists first noticed the upcoming severe weather event before noon on Friday. AccuWeather forecasters have determined the most probable time for a tornado between 2 and 8 p.m.
AccuWeather said it is starting to send emergency signals at 3:28 pm to local businesses and through its mobile app to warn that a tornado is imminent.
The National Weather Service issued a tornado warning at 3:38 p.m. Friday for Antrim and Otsego counties, which include Gaylord.
Residents were warned of the impending tornado via Code Red signals on their cellular devices. Gaylord has no tornado sirens.
Tornado sirens are too expensive to work with, Otsego emergency manager John Deming said on Saturday. Deming said he did not immediately know how much the sirens would cost.
“That’s why we use Code Red and the state uses Code Red,” Deming said. “And it’s much faster and goes to your phones. He hits TVs and everything. Cheeses are good, but many communities just can’t afford to spend that much money on cheeses. ”
As for the material damage, Deming said they may be able to assess the financial impact of the tornado on Tuesday.
“There are a lot of damaged cars,” he said. “It simply came to our notice then. And we have a lot of homes. “
Add Comment