Tornado touches down in Dundee overnight; Ann Arbor hit with 2 inches of rain
Updated story: 11 people treated for injuries after tornado touches down in Dundee; storms knock out power across the region
Officials say a tornado touched down in Dundee overnight, causing severe damage to Cabela's and the Splash Universe water park, ripping roofs off homes, collapsing at least one house and blowing tractor-trailers off US-23.
National Weather Service meteorologist Amos Dodson said a survey team will be sent to the area to verify the damage was caused by a tornado and determine how strong it was and where it touched down.
The tornado was reported at 2:17 a.m.
"Based on the reports we received and the radar activity, we do believe it was a tornado," Dodson said.
The parking lot of Cabela's is shown after the tornado.
Emergency crews from across the area - including Pittsfield Township police officers and firefighters and Ann Arbor Fire Department crews - were sent to Dundee to help. The village of Dundee is about 25 miles south of Ann Arbor in Monroe County.
Residents in Dundee reported numerous trees down on houses and cars and power outages. US-23 near Cabela's was closed due to debris in the roadway.
An official with the Monroe County Office of Emergency Management said no one was available to comment about the damage at 7:20 a.m.
It's unclear how many people were injured. According to the Toledo Blade, several people were taken to Dundee hospitals for treatment after damage to the roof of Splash Universe at the Holiday Inn Express near US-23. No life-threatening injuries were reported.
About 500 people were evacuated from the hotel to the nearby Dundee Middle School, Monroe County commissioners told the Blade.
A state of emergency was declared in Dundee Township and the village of Dundee. A help line was set up for anyone who needs assistance and can be reached at 734-529-2277.
Downtown Ann Arbor received about 2 inches of rain Saturday night.
Photo courtesy of Angela Todd
Officials believe it was the only tornado to touch down overnight, Dodson said.
The system of storms - which lasted from about 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. - dumped 2 inches of rain onto the Ann Arbor area, leading to widespread flooding, Dodson said.
At 2:30 a.m., meteorologists received reports of flooding at Packard and Eisenhower and M-14 and US-23. A flash flood warning was issued Saturday night.
"We're seeing a lot of flooding, and the storms mostly moved along I-94 from Ann Arbor to Detroit," Dodson said.
Dispatchers from the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Department said they weren't aware of any road closures or other issues due to flooding this morning.
A DTE Energy power outage map updated at 7:16 a.m. showed many residents in Washtenaw and Monroe counties without power. Areas hardest hit by power outages include Ypsilanti, York Township, Augusta Township, Milan, London Township, Dundee, Maybee, Raisinville and Frenchtown.
At 9:46 a.m., an updated map showed power had been restored to some customers in Milan and the townships of York, Augusta and London. Ann Arbor had between 1,001 to 2,000 customers without power.
More rain could be in the forecast. Dodson said there's a 40 percent chance of rain today - but it would be light, scattered showers.
Did you get photos from last night's storms or the flooding? E-mail them to news@annarbor.com.
Comments
leaguebus
Mon, Jun 7, 2010 : 11:28 a.m.
Thanks to Maple for the Scanner info. I have not bought one yet because I didn't know anything about them. But I will buy one now... Also Edward has done a great job finding the pix from Dundee. Thanks..
krc
Mon, Jun 7, 2010 : 7:34 a.m.
I called Cabela's yesterday because I had heard that their roof collapsed, the store flooded and they were going to have a 75% off sale. There was also concern that the many animals displayed were ruined. The employee assured me that they were fine, they only lost some shingles and siding and were open for business.
D. Mike Rossi
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 8:37 p.m.
I was sadden to hear of the severe weather in the Michigan and Ohio area and of the loss of life and property. I live and grew up on Long Island in New york, My wife is from Maumee Oh, my uncle graduated from Ohio State, and my wife still has friends in Maumee, so yes we are Buckeyes. So i wish to send thoughts and prayers to you Wolverines, our fiends in rivalry, our neighbors and fellow Americans, and to any from Ohio that might pass through here. We're thinking about you. I wish you all well. PS... I also have a son in Chicago and Edward's link to the weather map showed that some of the system also passed through there too....
Vivienne Armentrout
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 3:45 p.m.
I was doing some research and I find that some communities in other states are planning on the basis of "500 year floods". (Actually, the better terminology is in terms of probabilities and these year terms are misleading.) As Vince is too diplomatic to say, our Ann Arbor strategy seems to be to ignore the real planning steps needed to prevent flooding damage and instead to facilitate development in the floodplain, even permitting development of non-residential property in the floodway. The Allen's Creek Watershed Group, of which Vince is the chair, has done much valuable work tracking this important issue. See their website for studies and useful information.
Vince Caruso
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 1:33 p.m.
@ WSC - Mulholland Ave and Murry St, just down the street, are some of the nicest neighborhoods in AA, not to mention the other homes in the Old West Side. Great area that I hope we can keep from flooding with proactive plans based on facts not intuition. Our neighborhood did fine I think except for the high flows on this, still open, branch of the Allens Creek with lots of erosion and high water in the park space. If we got the 4-5 rain that happened just in the very south of AA (not to mention the 8.8 in northern Ohio last night), AA could be in real danger. If and when the city does a meaningful watershed study for the Allens Creek Watershed we would know what best to do to preserve the 1,000 to 1,500 homes we think are in danger of flooding just in this watershed. Unfortunately we really only have the 1968 (!) flood data to go on with little or no real data collection happening at the current time. The new FEMA MAPS now 5 years delayed, rely mainly on the same 68 data. Several national and state scientific bodies, including, US-EPA, have warned of much heaver rain events then in the past in MI will now be happening due to global warming. Heres a link to an article in 08 discussing some of the flood threat in AA in the AA News archive: "Is a massive flood in Ann Arbor's future?" http://blog.mlive.com/annarbornews/2008/07/is_a_massive_flood_in_ann_arbo.html Lots of good info. and links on last night storm here today. Thanks Ms. Nash and Mr.Vielmetti.
Edward R Murrow's Ghost
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 1:31 p.m.
Aha!! Thanks! Good Night and Good Luck!
Edward R Murrow's Ghost
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 12:37 p.m.
Ed, Thanks for the links. One question of "computerese." Is there anyway that A2.com can make it so that when a link is placed in a text box and someone clicks on the link, the link opens in a new window rather than replacing the A2.com page? Thanks! Good Night and Good Luck
Cash
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 12:02 p.m.
"Officials believe it was the only tornado to touch down overnight, Dodson said." People were killed just south of the state line outside of Toledo in a tornado. I'm guessing the NWS person meant that was the only one in Michigan?
WSC
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 11:20 a.m.
@ Vince Caruso I've walked Mulholland Ave. numerous times. Lovely street with wonderfully kept homes. Hope all is well with you and yours. I know you are in a little hollow there. Does it flood often, or was last night an exception?
Elaine F. Owsley
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 10:52 a.m.
The State Sons of the American Legion convention was taking place with some of the attendees staying at the Splash Universe Hotel which was damaged in the tornado. The National Commander of the Sons was in attendance. Some of the equipment for the convention was in the trailer that was flattened.
John Q
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 10:48 a.m.
Multiple deaths were reported across the state line in the suburbs of Toledo from a tornado earlier in the evening. http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hP4Ms7EkAI5UtMVI3-49mTCPaKmQD9G5R9B80
AndyYpsilanti
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 10:28 a.m.
last time i checked there were no hospitals in Dundee
Maple
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 9:59 a.m.
Having lived in tornado alley, I cannot say enough how important it is to have a NOAA weather alert radio like this one: http://www.amazon.com/Midland-WR-300-MIDLAND-WR300-Weather/dp/B00009V2YV/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1275795473&sr=8-11 (Cheaper models do not allow you to turn off the siren for non-emergency alerts like severe thunderstorms, watches, etc so that's why I have this particular model. When I had the cheaper one I would get tired of being woken up (and having the baby woken up) in the middle of the night for non-emergencies and then I just unplugged the thing, thus defeating the purpose. Municipal sirens are only intended for people who are *outdoors* to hear. So if you're counting on knowing about a tornado warning while you are indoors, and especially if you want to be woken up at night, a NOAA radio is the only way to know. They need to be programmed, but it's fairly straightforward and so worth it.
Sandra
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 9:57 a.m.
What is the best way to obtain current up to date weather information for Ann Arbor, not Detroit? Would it be NOAA weather radio? Also, does anyone have accurate statistics of tornadoes touching down in Ann Arbor? It seems that over the last 50 years all of the reported touchdowns have been within a 20 mile radius of AA but not in the city. Is it true that our geography here with some varying topography and the river valley discourages touchdowns, especially prolonged touchdowns?
Vince Caruso
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 9:34 a.m.
Checking the area this morning - about 3" on our rain gauge near Liberty and Virginia; 4.5 feet of standing water behind Virginia Park overnight, we replaced the manhole cover that was completely off at the bottom of Mulholland Ave.; Nexrad from online shows estimates of 3-4" rain in a few spots in southern Ann Arbor, 2-3" rain in central southern, and 1.5-2" in central northern Ann Arbor, 8.8" rain in northern Ohio. About a 4.4" rain event in 24 hrs is the 100 year flood for this area.
glynda
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 9:31 a.m.
Is US-23 still open through Dundee?
Anonymous Due to Bigotry
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 9:05 a.m.
Yea, too bad the radar can only detect "tornado vortex signatures" and not whether there are actual tornadoes on the ground. NEXRAD was detecting at least 3 TVS' last night which passed directly over ann arbor. I suppose we were pretty lucky that one didn't result in an actual tornado. If you can't see a tornado, you can at least listen for the loud freight train noise that indicates that one is nearby. If you hear that then it's time to take cover if you haven't already.
SalineSid
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 9:01 a.m.
Timing is everything. I was at a hotel across the street from Cabelas and slept until 2:20. Had a chance to look east and see the light show *after * the storm wasgone.
JW
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 8:48 a.m.
My rain gauge this morning near Packard and Carpenter had 3.63 inches of rain in it from last nights downpour.
tdw
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 8:33 a.m.
The weather service is now saying it was a tornado
CityFF
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 8:16 a.m.
The City of Ann Arbor sent multiple Fire units as well. They also deployed their Technical Rescue Team to Dundee. Thanks for the mention Amalie.
63Townie
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 8:14 a.m.
Tornadoes late at night are extremely difficult to detect. Radar signatures can indicate rotation, but without trained spotter reports, it's next to impossible to tell if one has touched down. Last night's storms would have been especially difficult for spotters since there was so much heavy rain it would tend to obscure a funnel cloud or tornado. (All a spotter can really do in that instance is look for power flashes from downed wires and transformers). That's why it's so important to heed the NWS warnings, especially at night.
dading dont delete me bro
Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 6:43 a.m.
i was hoping to see some pictures from dundee...and send them to my brother in tx...but no fox2 news is live there, guess what ima watching?