Heavy Rain in Ohio, May 1 to 31, 1997

Name: Heavy Rain in Ohio, May 1 to 31, 1997
Start: 1997-05-01T00:00
End: 1997-05-31T23:59
Location: Ohio

May 1 to 31, 1997 · NWS CLE · 30 events in 30 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 30 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: $1.0 million
Events: 30

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.

What happened

The episode as NWS CLE wrote it up.

Due to excess rainfall and lower than normal temperatures, approximately 75 percent of field planting was not done on time. Some farmers got an early start, but crops already in the ground were underwater and rotting. Farmers were urged to plant soybeans instead of corn which does not fare well in wet conditions. But, corn that was sprayed with chemicals that kill beans could not be replanted to soybeans. The rain could aslo affect this year's wheat crop which is susceptible to head scab when wet weather occurs while the wheat is flowering. In the northwestern counties, where truck farming is prevalent, the planting of tomatoes, cucumbers and other produce was also behind schedule.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

30 heavy rain. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Rain, Ashland

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Ashland County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 40.846, -82.271 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Ashtabula

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Ashtabula County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.896, -80.759 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Crawford

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Crawford County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 40.851, -82.920 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Cuyahoga

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Cuyahoga County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.479, -81.678 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Erie

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Erie County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.432, -82.700 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Fulton

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Fulton County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.602, -84.130 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Geauga

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Geauga County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.500, -81.179 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Hancock

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Hancock County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.002, -83.666 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Henry

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Henry County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.334, -84.068 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Holmes

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Holmes County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 40.561, -81.929 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Huron

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Huron County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.146, -82.598 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Knox

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Knox County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 40.399, -82.421 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Lake

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Lake County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.714, -81.245 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Lorain

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Lorain County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.453, -82.151 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Lucas

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Lucas County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.684, -83.468 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Mahoning

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Mahoning County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.015, -80.776 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Marion

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Marion County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 40.587, -83.161 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Medina

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Medina County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.118, -81.900 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Morrow

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Morrow County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 40.524, -82.794 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Ottawa

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Ottawa County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.497, -82.941 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Portage

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Portage County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.168, -81.197 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Richland

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Richland County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 40.775, -82.536 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Sandusky

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Sandusky County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.357, -83.144 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Seneca

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Seneca County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.124, -83.128 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Stark

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Stark County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 40.814, -81.366 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Summit

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Summit County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.126, -81.532 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Trumbull

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Trumbull County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.317, -80.761 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Wayne

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Wayne County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 40.829, -81.888 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Wood

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Wood County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 41.362, -83.623 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Wyandot

When: May 1, 12:00 AM EST to May 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where: Wyandot County, Countywide
Crop damage: $34,000
Coordinates: 40.842, -83.304 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Heavy Rain: Rainfall totals unusual for the place and season that did not produce a flood.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Ohio in 1997 Every state in 1997 This day in weather history Warnings in Ohio, May 1997

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: 5605903, 5605904, 5605905, 5606024, 5606025, 5606026, 5606027, 5606028, 5606029, 5606030, 5606031, 5606032, 5606033, 5606034, 5606035, 5606036, 5606037, 5606038, 5606039, 5606040, 5606041, 5606042, 5606043, 5606044, 5606045, 5606046, 5606047, 5606048, 5606049, 5606050.