Severe storms came through Spring Lake and the rest of West Michigan Tuesday night. The storms started as just severe thunderstorm warnings and turned into a tornado watch as the night went on. With strong winds, lots of lightning, and thunder, the sirens were sent off.
In Ottawa County, the sirens go off when there are winds at or above 70 miles per hour. These winds don’t have to be tornadic and could just be straight 70 mph winds for the sirens to go off. They are set off as a warning that being outside could be dangerous and to advise you to take cover.
Eight tornados were confirmed in the state after Tuesday’s storms, including in West Michigan in Ravenna and Allegan. Multiple occurred on the east side of the state. Ann Arbor recorded the strongest EF-1 tornado with 110-mph winds.
After these storms, lots of rain the past week, and a very snowy winter, many people are experiencing flooding. As of Wednesday, April 15, 81 of the 83 counties in Michigan are under a flood watch.
Many people’s yards have already started to pool with water in low areas in many areas of Spring Lake.
The Grand River recently dropped below a chance of flooding, but after the heavy rainfall in the past week, it is likely to return to flooding conditions soon.
Parts of Michigan are worse than others, including the Cheboygan Dam, which is 7.68 inches from spilling over and flooding the town. The citizens of this town have been told to be on standby for evacuation.
The Muskegon River is also about to reach record-high levels of water, causing a higher chance for flooding. Officials say to be “weather aware” during storm events, able to hear sirens and receive emergency updates on changing conditions.
