National Weather Service Issues Tornado Watch for Six Counties — Grand Rapids Weather

Grand Rapids weather turned part of southeast Michigan into a tornado watch area Thursday night as the National Weather Service covered six counties until 2 a.m. Friday. The alert followed a day when severe weather was possible in Metro Detroit as storms moved through the region.

Residents in Bay, Genesee, Livingston, Midland, Saginaw and Shiawassee counties were included. Cities named inside the watch area were Bay City, Brighton, Durand, Flint, Fowlerville, Howell, Midland, Owosso and Saginaw.

National Weather Service watch

The watch meant conditions were favorable for tornadoes and severe thunderstorms in and close to the area. It did not mean a tornado had been spotted, and forecasters told residents to stay alert, monitor weather updates and be ready to move to shelter if warnings were issued.

Bay and Genesee counties

For people in the watch zone, the practical step was simple: keep weather alerts on and know where shelter is before warnings arrive. Bay City, Flint and the other named communities were inside the time-limited watch, giving residents a window to act before the alert expired at 2 a.m. Friday.

Southeast Michigan cities

The timing mattered because the watch came while storms were still moving through southeast Michigan on Thursday night. That left a defined region with a short deadline and a clear instruction from forecasters: watch the sky, follow updates and be ready to move quickly if a warning replaces the watch.