Tornadoes and Hail in Ohio, April 3, 1974

Name: Tornadoes and Hail in Ohio, April 3, 1974
Start: 1974-04-03T10:50
End: 1974-04-03T23:45
Location: Ohio

April 3, 1974 · 38 events in 21 counties and zones

16 tornado, 15 hail, 7 thunderstorm wind, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 42
Injuries: 1,396
Property damage: $257 million
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 38

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

Event by event

16 tornado, 15 hail, 7 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Franklin

When: April 3, 10:50 AM CST
Where: Franklin County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 40.000, -82.880

Thunderstorm Wind, Holmes

When: April 3, 11:50 AM CST
Where: Holmes County
Coordinates: 40.600, -82.120

Tornado, Greene

When: April 3, 1:30 PM CST
Where: Greene County
Rating: F5
Path length: 20.4 mi
Path width: 533 yd
Deaths: 36 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries: 1,150 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $250 million
Coordinates: 39.630, -84.050

Hail, Greene

When: April 3, 2:45 PM CST
Where: Greene County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 39.780, -84.080

Tornado, Clark

When: April 3, 2:50 PM CST
Where: Clark County
Rating: F5
Path length: 10.9 mi
Path width: 533 yd
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 39.780, -83.720

Tornado, Clark

When: April 3, 2:55 PM CST
Where: Clark County
Rating: F2
Path length: 15.7 mi
Path width: 180 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 39.830, -83.570

Hail, Madison

When: April 3, 3:15 PM CST
Where: Madison County
Measured: 1.5 in hail
Coordinates: 39.970, -83.380

Hail, Greene

When: April 3, 3:20 PM CST
Where: Greene County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 39.630, -84.070

Tornado, Hamilton

When: April 3, 3:28 PM CST
Where: Hamilton County
Rating: F4
Path length: 9.4 mi
Path width: 350 yd
Deaths: 2 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries: 39 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 39.180, -84.480

Hail, Greene

When: April 3, 3:30 PM CST
Where: Greene County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 39.730, -83.930

Hail, Butler

When: April 3, 3:40 PM CST
Where: Butler County
Measured: 2.75 in hail
Coordinates: 39.330, -84.450

Tornado, Warren

When: April 3, 3:45 PM CST
Where: Warren County
Rating: F4
Path length: 10.4 mi
Path width: 350 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 39.300, -84.380

Hail, Clark

When: April 3, 3:45 PM CST
Where: Clark County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 39.830, -83.770

Hail, Warren

When: April 3, 3:45 PM CST
Where: Warren County
Measured: 2.75 in hail
Coordinates: 39.350, -84.320

Hail, Franklin

When: April 3, 3:45 PM CST
Where: Franklin County
Measured: 1 in hail
Coordinates: 40.000, -82.980

Tornado, Hamilton

When: April 3, 4:45 PM EST
Where: Hamilton County
Rating: F5
Path length: 6.8 mi
Path width: 533 yd
Deaths: 3 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries: 190 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates: 39.120, -84.670

Tornado, Warren

When: April 3, 4:00 PM CST
Where: Warren County
Rating: F2
Path length: 9.8 mi
Path width: 177 yd
Injuries: 9 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 39.380, -84.230

Thunderstorm Wind, Franklin

When: April 3, 4:00 PM CST
Where: Franklin County
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph)
Coordinates: 40.080, -83.070

Tornado, Franklin

When: April 3, 4:05 PM CST
Where: Franklin County
Rating: F2
Path length: 5.1 mi
Path width: 90 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 40.080, -82.850

Thunderstorm Wind, Hamilton

When: April 3, 4:10 PM CST
Where: Hamilton County
Measured: 58 kt (67 mph)
Coordinates: 39.100, -84.420

Thunderstorm Wind, Delaware

When: April 3, 4:10 PM CST
Where: Delaware County
Coordinates: 40.200, -82.800

Tornado, Pickaway

When: April 3, 4:18 PM CST
Where: Pickaway County
Rating: F1
Path length: 1 mi
Path width: 10 yd
Injuries: 7 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 39.600, -83.000

Hail, Franklin

When: April 3, 4:30 PM CST
Where: Franklin County
Measured: 1.5 in hail
Coordinates: 39.820, -82.930

Thunderstorm Wind, Licking

When: April 3, 4:30 PM CST
Where: Licking County
Coordinates: 40.200, -82.620

Hail, Defiance

When: April 3, 5:15 PM CST
Where: Defiance County
Measured: 2.75 in hail
Coordinates: 41.380, -84.450

Tornado, Paulding

When: April 3, 5:30 PM CST
Where: Paulding County
Rating: F2
Path length: 9.2 mi
Path width: 350 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 41.030, -84.400

Hail, Belmont

When: April 3, 5:30 PM CST
Where: Belmont County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 40.080, -80.900

Hail, Williams

When: April 3, 5:30 PM CST
Where: Williams County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 41.470, -84.550

Hail, Van Wert

When: April 3, 5:30 PM CST
Where: Van Wert County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 40.870, -84.570

Hail, Meigs

When: April 3, 5:40 PM CST
Where: Meigs County
Measured: 1.25 in hail
Coordinates: 39.050, -82.280

Tornado, Adams

When: April 3, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Adams County
Rating: F1
Path length: 9.1 mi
Path width: 180 yd
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 38.670, -83.750

Tornado, Adams

When: April 3, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Adams County
Rating: F3
Path length: 15.5 mi
Path width: 500 yd
Deaths: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 38.820, -83.600

Tornado, Paulding

When: April 3, 6:45 PM CST
Where: Paulding County
Rating: F3
Path length: 8.7 mi
Path width: 177 yd
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 41.050, -84.450

Tornado, Paulding

When: April 3, 7:00 PM CST
Where: Paulding County
Rating: F1
Path length: 1.3 mi
Path width: 100 yd
Coordinates: 41.080, -84.470

Tornado, Paulding

When: April 3, 7:00 PM CST
Where: Paulding County
Rating: F1
Path length: 6.4 mi
Path width: 90 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 41.080, -84.700

Tornado, Brown

When: April 3, 7:30 PM CST
Where: Brown County
Rating: F1
Path length: 4.1 mi
Path width: 100 yd
Coordinates: 38.670, -83.770

Thunderstorm Wind, Summit

When: April 3, 11:45 PM CST
Where: Summit County
Coordinates: 41.170, -81.430

Thunderstorm Wind, Monroe

When: April 3, 11:45 PM CST
Where: Monroe County
Coordinates: 39.770, -81.120

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

Event	Date	Age	Sex	Where	Kind
Tornado, Adams	1974-04-03				Direct

What these are

Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
Tornado: A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Ohio in 1974 Every state in 1974 This day in weather history The tornado archive for Ohio, 1974

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 10086974, 10086975, 10086976, 10086977, 10086978, 10086979, 10086980, 10086981, 10086982, 10086983, 10086984, 10086985, 10086986, 10086987, 10086988, 10086997, 10086989, 10086990, 10086991, 10086992, 10086993, 10086994, 10086995, 10086996, 10086998, 10086999, 10087000, 10087001, 10087002, 10087003, 10087004, 10087005, 10087006, 10087007, 10087008, 10087009, 10087010, 10087011.