Marquette and Alger county residents are experiencing hurricane-like winds due to a severe storm along Lake Superior that has downed trees around the county, leaving some without power for hours.

“We’re under the influence of a pretty active [weather] pattern right now with a strong fall of pressure system back in the area and it’s brought, today, very strong gusty winds especially along Lake Superior,” Brett Borchardt, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service for Marquette, said.

Borchardt said in some areas the wind is in excess of 60 miles per hour and there are very large waves along Lake Superior in excess of 20 feet.

He added, with the onset of heavy rainfall, regions close to Marquette County can expect to receive at least 2 to 3 inches of rain in storm totals throughout the day. He also said, overnight, there will be a changeover to snow in some locations, especially in the higher terrain.

There is currently a lakeshore flood advisory and high wind warnings out for the Keewenaw Peninsula as well as Marquette and Alger counties due to the large waves along Lake Superior, Borchardt said.

Road closings around Marquette County include Lakeshore Blvd. in the city of Marquette.

“It is fairly normal to get these strong storm systems late in the year,” Borchardt said. “Sometimes they’re called the ‘gales of November.’ It’s just that we get a change in seasons from basically summer to winter.

“This storm seems to be a little bit stronger than most, it’s just normal to get a stronger storm every now and then just as it is to get a weaker storm so I guess we’re starting off Winter with a Bang.”  

The Marquette Board of Light and Power reported a number of power outages in the Marquette County area due to things like downed trees hitting power lines but so far no specific locations have been reported. Business like Walmart and Target were forced close their doors due to the effects of the storm knocking out power along U.S. Hwy. 41.