Crews at the University of Michigan Biological Station are working to assess damage and clean up after ice storms swept through northern Michigan, downing trees and power lines and leaving thousands without power.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on March 31 declared a state of emergency for 10 counties in northern Michigan including Cheboygan County, where UMBS is located, to help with response and recovery efforts.
Many trees and branches broke and fell onto roads and trails at the field research station in Pellston, creating hazardous obstacles.
For everyone’s safety, the public is asked to avoid storm-damaged areas.
UMBS is encouraging visitors to refrain from walking the hiking trails, skiing on cross country ski trails, or driving through campus along Douglas Lake in order to give UMBS crews the space they need to assess damage and clear debris.
“I want to give a huge shoutout to the UMBS team in Pellston for their dedication and resilience in cleaning up after the severe ice storms in northern Michigan,” said UMBS Director Aimée Classen, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology in LSA. “We’re grateful for their hard work and commitment to the community.”
UMBS is one of the nation’s largest and longest continuously operating field research stations, located about 20 miles south of the Mackinac Bridge. Laboratories, classrooms and cabins are nestled along Douglas Lake’s South Fishtail Bay, making up a small portion of the more than 10,000 forested acres that UMBS has stewarded since 1909.
The research and teaching campus in Pellston — the largest of U-M’s campuses — serves as a gathering place to learn from the natural world, advance research and education, and inspire action. UMBS also is home to more than 23 miles of hiking trails.
