Storm reports for July 8, 2016

On the morning of July 8, storms crossing northern Michigan dropped hail up to 3 inches across in Glen Arbor and golf ball size hail in Empire, in Leelanau County.¹ The hail there damaged some vehicles and broke windows and skylights on a few homes.¹ Near Central Lake in Antrim County, 3-inch hail dented numerous vehicles and broke some windows.²

Late that afternoon, storms crossing the southern Appalachians brought downburst winds of 60 to 70 mph, with speeds as high as 80 mph estimated in places.³ Falling trees killed three people, a woman outside her home in West Knoxville and a couple at a campsite near Watauga Lake in Carter County.^3,4 In Macon County, Tennessee, trees fell on many homes and outbuildings, and one home was reported destroyed.⁵ In Watauga and Wilkes counties, North Carolina, winds blew part of a roof off a building in downtown Boone and a roof off a building near Elkville, and damage to structures and vehicles was reported in North Wilkesboro and Rock Creek.^6,7

Around 7 p.m. CST, a microburst with winds estimated at 78 knots (90 mph) hit the city of Midland, Texas, where the American Red Cross found damage to 28 homes and to businesses along Wall Street.⁸ Early on July 8, winds cut a swath from the Henderson County line into Owensboro, Kentucky, where falling trees damaged some homes and a state of emergency was declared for Daviess County.⁹