A cold front moved through the Great Lakes region, producing strong thunderstorms. Some storms produced damaging wind.
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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 ILN wrote it up.
A cold front moved through the Great Lakes region, producing strong thunderstorms. Some storms produced damaging wind.
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 Wilmington, OH wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 26, 2:46 PM EST, 4 hours 14 minutes earlier. Its key messages:
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Wilmington OH 346 PM EDT Thu Mar 26 2026 .WHAT HAS CHANGED... No significant changes. Slight increase to rainfall north of I-70. && .KEY MESSAGES... 1) Near record warming today. Colder Friday and Saturday after cold frontal passage. 2) Thunderstorms associated with a cold front passage impact the area tonight. The potential exists for storms to become strong to severe exists. Also, a localized flood threat will exist, especially north of I-70. && .DISCUSSION... KEY MESSAGE 1) An initial round of showers and embedded thunderstorms that affected mainly southern portions of the area moved off to the southeast by mid morning. In the warm sector most of ILN/s area stays dry until surface cold front slips into the north this evening. Southwesterly flow has increased with gusts up to 35 mph. Also, satellite imagery shows that clouds have given way to abundant sunshine. This combination will allow temperatures to approach or possibly exceed record highs. The records for Thursday 3/26 CVG 82 set in 1907 DAY 81 set in 1907 CMH 80 set in 1907 The cold front exits the area early Friday with lingering rain showers ending through late morning. Much cooler temperatures settle into the area with highs on Friday are expected to range from the lower 40s north to the lower 50s south. KEY MESSAGE 2) Forecast soundings and satellite imagery show that ILN/s forecast area is currently capped in the warm sector. ILN will be putting up a special 20Z balloon release to sample boundary layer moisture. Strong mid level westerly winds exist thru the Midwest and Great Lakes region. A mid level short wave will track quickly east- southeast offering high falls across the Great Lakes/Ohio Valley overnight. A strong surface cold front will push south into ILN/s northern counties late this evening and then south of the area overnight. Model solutions continue to show this capping warm layer between 8H and 7H which will inhibit convective development in the warm sector for much of the daytime hours. Therefore, expect convective activity to hold off until the strong low-level forcing arrives with the frontal boundary. ML guidance and analogs continue to point to the potential for severe weather with the storms tonight. Higher resolution models continue to show a weak surface wave tracking along the east-west boundary during the early evening (most likely just north of ILN/s FA). The best threat for potential tornadoes looks to occur across ILN/s northern counties early in the evening ahead of this wave - if convection were to develop a little south into the area. Steep mid level lapse rates will be in place over the region, and this will aid destabilization, with moderate instability expected. Given the strong deep-layer flow, hodographs also are elongated/straight. Supercells producing large hail are possible, even with elevated convection to the cool side of the boundary. As we head into the later evening hours and overnight, the favored convective mode looks to evolve to line segments. Damaging winds will continue to be a threat. The storms weaken and severe threat diminishes as the storms and front shift south during the nighttime hours and approach the Ohio River. PWAT values look to be in excess of 300 percent of normal tonight. Although the system is progressive and the front looks to sink south quickly, with the anomalously high PWATs, and mean flow parallel to the front, the potential exists for localized stripes of 2-3 inches of rainfall. HREF LPMM also backs this potential for 2 to 3 inch rainfall stripes, with the favored region north of I-70. Will continue to highlight this localized flood threat in the HWO. && .AVIATION /19Z THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/... In the warm sector VFR conditions are being observed across the TAF sites with southwesterly wind gusts up to 30 KTS. Showers and thunderstorms associated with a strong cold front are expected to develop south thru the evening and overnight hours. These storms will have the potential of becoming strong to severe with the highest potential for wind and hail across the KDAY, KCMH and KLCK. The storms are expected to weaken as they push farther south and approach the Ohio River. In addition, a period of LLWS will be possible with a low level jet thru the evening hours. VFR conditions will drop to widespread MVFR with a period of IFR ceilings possible late. Visibilities and ceilings dropping to IFR conditions are likely in storms. MVFR ceilings will improve to VFR Friday afternoon. OUTLOOK...MVFR conditions with thunderstorms possible Monday. && .ILN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... OH...None. KY...None. IN...None. && DISCUSSION...AR AVIATION...AR
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Wilmington OH 348 PM EDT Thu Mar 26 2026 INZ050-058-059-066-073-074-OHZ026-034-035-042>046-051>056-060>065- 070>074-077-080-272000- Wayne-Fayette-Union-Franklin-Ripley-Dearborn-Hardin-Mercer-Auglaize- Darke-Shelby-Logan-Delaware-Miami-Champaign-Clark-Madison-Licking- Preble-Montgomery-Greene-Pickaway-Fairfield-Butler-Warren-Clinton- Ross-Hocking-Hamilton-Highland- 348 PM EDT Thu Mar 26 2026 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for east central Indiana, southeast Indiana, central Ohio, south central Ohio, southwest Ohio and west central Ohio. .DAY ONE...This afternoon and tonight. Thunderstorms will occur along and behind a cold front that will cross this evening and overnight hours. Damaging winds, large hail and very heavy rainfall are the primary threats. Isolated tornadoes could occur early in the development of these storms. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Friday through Wednesday. There is a low probability for widespread hazardous weather. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation will likely be needed. INZ075-080-KYZ089>100-OHZ078-079-081-082-088-272000- Ohio-Switzerland-Carroll-Gallatin-Boone-Kenton-Campbell-Owen-Grant- Pendleton-Bracken-Robertson-Mason-Lewis-Clermont-Brown-Adams-Pike- Scioto- 348 PM EDT Thu Mar 26 2026 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for southeast Indiana, northeast Kentucky, northern Kentucky, south central Ohio and southwest Ohio. .DAY ONE...This afternoon and tonight. Thunderstorms will occur along and behind a cold front that will cross the area during the overnight hours tonight. Damaging winds, large hail and localized heavy rainfall are the primary threats. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Friday through Wednesday. There is a low probability for widespread hazardous weather. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation may be needed.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
11 thunderstorm wind, 1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
A home sustained roof and siding damage. Additionally, several large tree branches were snapped.
A metal roof awning blew off of a home and onto State Route 68.
A shed roof was blown off.
Several power poles were downed across State Route 274.
A utility pole was downed across Sanders Road.
A roof was blown off of a barn.
Several power poles were downed onto Boundary Road.
A barn was destroyed by strong winds.
Power poles and power lines were downed across a roadway.
A property sustained minor roof damage and also had multiple trees uprooted.
The first tornadic damage was observed at the Hardin County Fairgrounds, just south of County Road 140, where minor roof damage occurred. Several wooden power poles were damaged and snapped in half. On the northern side of the fairgrounds, a hardwood tree was snapped and a building sustained a major loss of its metal roofing panels. An additional building had its concrete block siding blown out, which caused a partial roof collapse. An open-ended barn structure was lifted, causing the support poles to be lifted and shifted. The final damage associated with this tornado was on the eastern side of the fairgrounds, where additional power poles were snapped and minor roof damage was observed to fairground buildings.
A barn was blown down along Byrket Road.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Ohio in 2026Every state in 2026This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Ohio, 2026Warnings in Ohio, March 2026
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: 1319786, 1319787, 1319788, 1319789, 1319790, 1319792, 1319791, 1319794, 1319795, 1319796, 1319799, 1319801.