A cut-off low pressure system over the Ohio Valley moved northeast on June 19th. The advancement of this low, along with a lake breeze off Lake Erie, allowed for shower and thunderstorm development over northern Ohio.
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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.
The episode as NWS CLE wrote it up.
A cut-off low pressure system over the Ohio Valley moved northeast on June 19th. The advancement of this low, along with a lake breeze off Lake Erie, allowed for shower and thunderstorm development over northern Ohio. Storms over the region moved in a northeast to southwest direction. One thunderstorm reached severe limits in Seneca County, where gusty winds caused wind damage near Bloomville.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Cleveland, OH wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 19, 11:48 AM EST, 2 hours 26 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Cleveland OH 1248 PM EDT Fri Jun 19 2020 .SYNOPSIS... A surface low pressure trough is expected to move northeast across the area this afternoon and tonight. A low pressure system developing out of the central Great Plains will move northeast across the Great Lakes on Sunday, bringing a weakening cold front across the area on Monday. Another low will take a similar track on Tuesday with a stronger cold front moving across the area Tuesday night into Wednesday. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH SATURDAY/... The upper-level low will make slow progress eastward today while upper-level ridging builds in from the west. As a result, an unstable atmosphere will develop this afternoon across much of the forecast area with temperatures in the 80s (upper 80s towards northwest Ohio and low 80s towards northwest Pennsylvania). Moisture will be marginal but sufficient for thunderstorm activity with dew points in the low 60s and precipitable water values around 1.2 to 1.4 inches. Initial convective initiation expected with low-level convergence near the lake breeze boundary. Storm motion expected to be generally out of the north and northeast as the low pressure circulation is expected to be over west-central Pennsylvania by this afternoon. From there, will expect thunderstorm coverage to expand outward to more inland areas along outflow boundaries and other hyper-localized features that end up developing. Deep vertical wind shear is weak (around 10 to 20 knots), though can't rule out some marginally organized clusters of convection along a developed cold pool later this afternoon. Mid-level lapse rates and CAPE in the hail growth zone (-10 to -30 deg C) aren't very favorable for the development of large hail and best area for downburst winds are reserved to areas west of a Sandusky to Morrow County line. That area is expected to have the highest low-level lapse rates (<-9C/km) along with highest DCAPE (>600J/kg) and max vertical theta-e difference (right around -20 C) due to dryer air aloft. However, the big caveat is that this same dry air is going to be a deterrent to storm development. So overall threat for severe weather is low but if a strong thunderstorm develops in the western portion of our forecast area, strong downburst winds could be possible. The threat for flooding is also low (though nonzero) as a marginally moist airmass and still mostly dry antecedent conditions should counteract slow storm motions. As storms are mainly tied to the diurnal cycle, thunderstorm activity rapidly decreased through the late evening hours with no rain expected overnight. Some patchy fog could develop overnight, especially for areas that receive precipitation during the daytime hours this afternoon. Low temperatures generally expected to be in the low to mid 60s tonight. Generally low precipitation chances expected on Saturday as that upper-level dissipates as it moves off to the east. Upper-level riding continues to build into the area with, which is why precipitation chances are significantly reduced. Some hi-res model guidance has some isolated to scattered showers/thunderstorms towards the Youngstown area and into northwest Pennsylvania, so will hold at least a slight chance PoP over there for Saturday afternoon. Otherwise, mostly sunny skies with high temperatures in the mid 80s to near 90 are expected during the afternoon. && .SHORT TERM /SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT/... Will be focusing on shortwave troughs moving through the flow across the Northern Plains and across the Great Lakes with a closed upper low. One such shortwave has been fairly consistently advertised for Sunday and therefore the forecast has a period of likely showers/thunderstorms with this feature. At the surface the approaching cold front stalls or dissipates just north of the area. Weak ridging follows for Sunday night and early Monday. Chances increase again Monday afternoon with a warm front and Monday night with the approach of the next trough. The weekend will be warm and muggy highs in the mid and upper 80s and dewpoints in the mid/upper 60s. && .LONG TERM /TUESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY/... The upper support from that next trough will pull across the Ohio Valley on Tuesday bringing a surface cold front across. Timing may still need refinement as it looks to slow, but a focus on Tuesday/Tuesday night looks best right now. We maintain cyclonic flow into Wednesday and Thursday as energy continues to move through the mean flow of the trough that will encompass the Great Lakes Tuesday through Thursday. Will still have a chance of showers/thunderstorms mentioned, but lower chances than Tuesday. Temperatures will be closer to normal with lower 80s Tuesday and upper 70s Wednesday and Thursday. Low temperatures will be in the 60s with a few upper 50s possible Wednesday night. && .AVIATION /18Z Friday THROUGH Tuesday/... A destabilizing atmosphere is noted on satellite, which should result in scattered thunderstorms across the area this afternoon. TAF sites with greatest chance for impacts from thunderstorms will be at KMFD, KCAK, and KYNG, with lower chances at KTOL, KFDY, and KCLE, and lowest chances at KERI. Thunderstorm activity mainly tied to diurnal cycle so coverage of showers/thunderstorms will rapidly decrease after 22-23Z with no rain expected during the overnight period tonight. Some patchy fog could develop late overnight but confidence is very low on exact locations. Most model guidance points to KYNG as having the highest chance for fog development so added a few hours of MVFR fog for now. Overall, winds expected to be light and variable through the TAF period. Outlook...Periods of non-VFR possible Saturday night through Monday with multiple rounds of showers and thunderstorms. && .MARINE... Relatively light winds and favorable wave conditions will continue on the lake through the weekend. High pressure is in place across the eastern lakes with a weakening upper disturbance across the Upper Ohio Valley. Light/variable to light offshore flow will switch to onshore flow with the lake breeze development this afternoon. This will occur again tonight and Saturday. South-southwest flow increases across on Sunday to around 10 knots as a weak cold front approaches, but stalls and dissipates before crossing the lake. The south-southwest flow will continue through Tuesday with a cold front crossing the lake late Tuesday. Winds will be strongest on Tuesday with winds increasing to around 15 knots. At this point do not anticipate that there will a need for a Small Craft Advisory. && .CLE WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... OH...None. PA...None. MARINE...None. && SYNOPSIS...Saunders NEAR TERM...Saunders SHORT TERM...Oudeman LONG TERM...Oudeman AVIATION...Saunders MARINE...Oudeman
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Cleveland OH 629 AM EDT Fri Jun 19 2020 LEZ061-142>149-162>169-OHZ003-006>014-017>023-027>033-036>038-047- 089-PAZ001>003-201030- Lake Erie open waters from Ripley to Buffalo NY- Lake Erie nearshore waters from Maumee Bay to Reno Beach OH- Lake Erie nearshore waters from Reno Beach to The Islands OH- Lake Erie nearshore waters from The Islands to Vermilion OH- Lake Erie nearshore waters from Vermilion to Avon Point OH- Lake Erie nearshore waters from Avon Point to Willowick OH- Lake Erie nearshore waters from Willowick to Geneva-on-the Lake OH- Lake Erie nearshore waters from Geneva-on-the-Lake to Conneaut OH- Lake Erie nearshore waters from Conneaut OH to Ripley NY- Lake Erie open waters from Maumee Bay to Reno Beach OH- Lake Erie open waters from Reno Beach to The Islands OH- Lake Erie open waters from The Islands to Vermilion OH- Lake Erie open waters from Vermilion to Avon Point OH- Lake Erie open waters from Avon Point to Willowick OH- Lake Erie open waters from Willowick to Geneva-on-the-Lake OH- Lake Erie open waters from Geneva-on-the-Lake to Conneaut OH- Lake Erie open waters from Conneaut OH to Ripley NY-Lucas-Wood- Ottawa-Sandusky-Erie-Lorain-Cuyahoga-Lake-Geauga-Ashtabula Inland- Hancock-Seneca-Huron-Medina-Summit-Portage-Trumbull-Wyandot-Crawford- Richland-Ashland-Wayne-Stark-Mahoning-Marion-Morrow-Holmes-Knox- Ashtabula Lakeshore-Northern Erie-Southern Erie- 629 AM EDT Fri Jun 19 2020 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for central Lake Erie, eastern Lake Erie, western Lake Erie, north central Ohio, northeast Ohio, northwest Ohio and northwest Pennsylvania. .DAY ONE...Today and tonight. No hazardous weather is expected at this time. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Saturday through Thursday. No hazardous weather is expected at this time. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation is not expected at this time.
Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Cleveland OH
216 PM EDT Fri Jun 19 2020
OHZ018-019-191845-
Seneca-Huron-
216 PM EDT Fri Jun 19 2020
...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WILL AFFECT SOUTHWESTERN HURON AND
SOUTHEASTERN SENECA COUNTIES...
At 216 PM EDT, a strong thunderstorm was located 8 miles northwest of
Willard, or 15 miles southwest of Norwalk, moving south at 5 mph.
Wind gusts up to 50 mph and half inch hail are possible with this
storm.
Locations impacted include...
Willard and Attica.
LAT...LON 4119 8291 4119 8281 4100 8271 4099 8299
4100 8300
TIME...MOT...LOC 1816Z 001DEG 6KT 4112 8285
SaundersSpecial Weather Statement National Weather Service Cleveland OH 252 PM EDT Fri Jun 19 2020 OHZ018-028-191915- Crawford-Seneca- 252 PM EDT Fri Jun 19 2020 ...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WILL AFFECT SOUTHEASTERN SENECA AND NORTH CENTRAL CRAWFORD COUNTIES... At 251 PM EDT, a strong thunderstorm was located near Bloomville, or 11 miles east of Tiffin, moving southwest at 15 mph. Wind gusts up to 50 mph and half inch hail are possible with this storm. Locations impacted include... Bloomville, Chatfield, Attica and Republic. LAT...LON 4118 8297 4114 8288 4094 8292 4100 8317 TIME...MOT...LOC 1851Z 024DEG 11KT 4109 8297 Saunders
The Cleveland radar (KCLE), 102 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:14 UTC.
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Trees and tree limbs were reported down in the Bloomville area, including one tree down near US Route 224 AND Township Road 181.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Ohio in 2020Every state in 2020This day in weather historyWarnings in Ohio, June 2020
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: 895773.