© 2024 Michigan State University Board of Trustees
Public Media from Michigan State University
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
TECHNOTE: WKAR broadcast signals will be off-air or low power during tower maintenance

Police report 2nd death from tornado in northern Michigan

Parking lot with lots of debris and damaged buildings with a gray sky.
Courtesy
/
Michigan State Police
The tornado hit Gaylord Friday afternoon.

Police say a second person died in a rare tornado that hit a small community in northern Michigan.

Lt. Derrick Carroll says the person was in their 70s and lived in a mobile home park in Gaylord. No other details have been released.

aerial photo of a destroyed mobile home park
Courtesy
/
Michigan State Police
A Michigan State Police Aviation team took photos of the devastation in Nottingham Forest Mobile Home Park in Gaylord.

Another person in their 70s who also lived at the park was reported to have died Friday evening, just a few hours after the tornado struck.

More than 40 people were injured. Gaylord is roughly 230 miles northwest of Detroit.

The Otsego County fire chief says there's “probably 95% destruction” at the park, with mobile homes “picked up and turned over.”

Experts say extreme spring winds are uncommon in the area because the Great Lakes typically suck energy out of storms.

The National Weather Service has rated the tornado an EF3 with max winds of 140 mph.

Journalism at this station is made possible by donors who value local reporting. Donate today to keep stories like this one coming. It is thanks to your generosity that we can keep this content free and accessible for everyone. Thanks!