UNION CITY, MI (WTVB) – The office of Governor Gretchen Whitmer is demanding a federal investigation into why the National Weather Service (NWS) failed to issue a tornado watch before a series of deadly storms devastated southwest Michigan last Friday. The storms, which included an EF-3 tornado with winds reaching 160 mph, resulted in four fatalities and dozens of injuries across Branch, Cass, and St. Joseph counties.
Whitmer’s spokesperson, Stacey LaRouche, stated that the absence of a watch is “troubling” and questioned whether recent federal funding cuts to the NWS hindered the agency’s ability to provide timely alerts to residents.
5th District congressman Tim Walberg who toured the devastated areas on Monday with other lawmakers dismissed the claims made by the governor’s office…