Tornadoes · United States · Missouri · 2026

EF1 tornado, Wayne County, Missouri, March 15, 2026

This EF1 tornado ran 1.6 miles across Wayne County on March 15, 2026, touching down at 5:51 PM CDT and reaching 125 yards wide. It killed nobody.

Preliminary. This is NWS PAH's damage survey, filed in the Damage Assessment Toolkit as Lodi. The rating, the path and the casualties are the survey's and can change while it is revised. The Storm Prediction Center compiles the official record of 2026 from these surveys and publishes it in the spring of 2027; this page moves to that tornado's permanent address when it does.

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The Enhanced Fujita scale rates the damage rather than measuring the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

  1. EF065 to 85 mph

    Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.

  2. EF186 to 110 mphthis tornado

    Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.

  3. EF2111 to 135 mph

    Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.

  4. EF3136 to 165 mph

    Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.

  5. EF4166 to 200 mph

    Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.

  6. EF5over 200 mph

    Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.

  7. Unrated

    The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.

The survey

Rating, as surveyed
EF1, preliminary
Date
March 15, 2026
Touchdown
5:51 PM CDT (22:51 UTC)
Lifted
5:53 PM CDT (22:53 UTC)
On the ground
2 minutes
Path length
1.6 miles (2.7 km)
Path width
125 yards (114 m)
Deaths
0
Injuries
0
County
Wayne County
Touchdown point
37.258, -90.452
Lift-off point
37.251, -90.424
Highest wind the damage implies
95 mph
Surveyed by
NWS PAH
The office's name for it
Lodi
Survey last edited
April 21, 2026
Record number
None yet. SPC numbers 2026 in the spring of 2027.

The damage survey

8 damage points were recorded along this path by NWS PAH, in the Damage Assessment Toolkit the survey teams carry. The strongest indicator was rated EF1. The highest wind the damage implies is 95 mph.

  • Damage is already cleaned up, but will attach a picture from EM. Debris also noted high up in the trees
  • Couple of barns damaged and trees are uprooted in this vicinity, showing convergence
  • Large swath of snapped trees probably at least 100 yards wide at this point.

Survey points are preliminary and are the raw material the published rating was built from. Source: NWS Damage Assessment Toolkit.

The warnings

No tornado warning for this county appears in the archive as in force at the moment the tornado touched down.

The county was under a tornado watch, issued at 20:58 UTC and running to 00:31 UTC.

Issued (UTC)ExpiredProductOffice
15:00 UTC17:57 UTCWind AdvisoryPAH
17:59 UTC12:00 UTCWind AdvisoryPAH
20:58 UTC00:31 UTCTornado WatchPAH
22:31 UTC23:15 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningPAH
22:59 UTC23:45 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningPAH

Every warning and watch covering the touchdown point that day, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service products. Lead time is measured from the issue of the warning in force to the touchdown time in the database, both of which were recorded to the minute by different people.

The forecast that day

The Storm Prediction Center had this point in a Enhanced Risk, with a 0.05 chance of a tornado within 25 miles, in the hatched area where significant tornadoes were expected. The outlook in force was issued at 19:57 UTC.

SPC's Day 1 convective outlook as it stood when the tornado began, read at the touchdown point. The same archive is on the radar archive.

The surface observations

Popular Bluff (POF), 54 km from the path, in the two hours either side.

Time (UTC)Temp (°F)Dew point (°F)WindGust (kt)Pressure (mb)Weather
20:53 UTC6260190° 16 kt23998.3
21:00 UTC190° 16 kt22998.3
21:05 UTC190° 14 kt998
21:10 UTC190° 15 kt997.6
21:15 UTC180° 17 kt997.3
21:20 UTC180° 17 kt26997.3
21:25 UTC190° 15 kt21997
21:30 UTC190° 18 kt23997
21:35 UTC190° 17 kt29997
21:40 UTC6561190° 19 kt29996.6
21:40 UTC190° 19 kt28996.6
21:45 UTC190° 21 kt996.6
21:50 UTC190° 20 kt996.6
21:53 UTC6560190° 19 kt32996.6
21:55 UTC190° 20 kt26996.3
22:00 UTC190° 17 kt27996.3
22:05 UTC200° 16 kt24996.3
22:10 UTC190° 16 kt996.3
22:15 UTC190° 19 kt995.9
22:20 UTC190° 18 kt24995.6
22:25 UTC190° 20 kt26995.3
22:30 UTC180° 18 kt24994.9
22:35 UTC190° 18 kt26994.6
22:40 UTC190° 16 kt22994.9
22:45 UTC190° 17 kt24994.6
22:50 UTC180° 21 kt28994.2
22:53 UTC6660190° 19 kt31994.2VCTS
22:55 UTC 28
23:00 UTC 26
23:05 UTC 20 kt25
23:10 UTC 995.3
23:15 UTC 995.6-RA
23:20 UTC6560250° 19 kt32997.3-TSRA
23:20 UTC250° 19 kt31997.3-RA
23:23 UTC6258300° 27 kt44997.6+TSRA BR
23:25 UTC300° 20 kt25997.3+RA BR
23:30 UTC300° 24 kt30997.6+RA BR
23:33 UTC5351280° 23 kt39999-TSRA BR
23:35 UTC290° 24 kt30999-RA BR
23:37 UTC5250290° 25 kt39999-TSRA
23:40 UTC290° 24 kt36999-RA
23:44 UTC5146290° 22 kt39999VCTS -RA
23:45 UTC290° 17 kt23998.6-RA
23:50 UTC300° 21 kt29998.6-RA
23:53 UTC5046300° 24 kt40999VCTS -RA
23:55 UTC300° 22 kt27999-RA
00:00 UTC300° 25 kt34999.3-RA
00:05 UTC300° 24 kt29999.7
00:10 UTC 39999.7
00:12 UTC4842310° 26 kt40999.7
00:15 UTC310° 27 kt999.7
00:20 UTC310° 23 kt36999.7
00:25 UTC310° 26 kt331000
00:30 UTC310° 22 kt321000.3
00:35 UTC300° 18 kt341000.7
00:40 UTC300° 18 kt231001-RA
00:45 UTC300° 19 kt1001-RA
00:50 UTC300° 17 kt251001-RA

From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of airport observations.

The radar

The Paducah radar (KPAH), 149 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 22:49 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment, over the track

Reflectivity and velocity, decoded from the Level II archive in the browser. Volumes take a few seconds to open the first time.

What was reported nearby

Local storm reports within 60 km of the path, in the three hours either side.

Time (UTC)ReportWhereCountyRemark
21:18 UTCTSTM WND GST 601 N FarmingtonSt. Francois, MO
22:18 UTCTSTM WND GST 601 N FarmingtonSt. Francois, MOCorrects previous tstm wnd gst report from 1 N Farmington.
22:50 UTCTSTM WND DMG3 Wnw LodiWayne, MOMultiple trees downed near Sam A Baker State Park.
22:51 UTCTORNADOLodiWayne, MOA brief EF-1 tornado produced damage in and southeast of the town of Lodi. The tornado began in Lodi, damaging tree branches near County Rd 305. It then tracked to the ESE near County Rd 216, damaging several barns. Tree
22:52 UTCTSTM WND DMGLodiWayne, MOSome barns and outbuildings damaged in Lodi. Time estimated from radar.
23:05 UTCTSTM WND DMG1 Ne BuckhornMadison, MOOutbuilding collapsed at Buckhorn General Baptist Church.
23:06 UTCTSTM WND DMG4 Ne BuckhornMadison, MOReport of a tree down blocking the road, time estimated by radar.
23:09 UTCTSTM WND DMGMarquandMadison, MORoof blown off a mobile home, time estimated by radar and video of damage.
23:19 UTCTORNADO2 Wsw SedgewickvilleBollinger, MOAn EF-1 tornado touched down just north of Hwy 72 about 2 miles southwest of Sedgewickville. Several outbuildings or barns suffered some degree of damage, ranging from the roof blown off to walls blown over and one that
23:20 UTCTSTM WND DMG2 Wsw SedgewickvilleBollinger, MOCounty Road 216 blocked by trees and County Road 218 blocked by a shed. Time estimated by radar.
23:30 UTCTSTM WND DMG3 W DaisyCape Girardeau, MOTrees damaged and along with a small shed.

From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service local storm reports.

This ground now

The live radar over the trackEvery 2026 tornado in MissouriEvery tornado in Missouri since 1950Warnings in force in Missouri nowThe forecast where you are

The other tornadoes of March 15, 2026

43 more have been surveyed in the United States that day, so far.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
March 153:37 PM CDTEF1Texas, MO0.3100
March 153:48 PM CDTEF0Howell, MO1.975
March 153:55 PM CDTEF1Texas, MO2.4100
March 154:00 PM CDTEF0Texas, MO0.8100
March 154:03 PM CDTEF1Shannon, MO1.4250
March 154:10 PM CDTEF0Texas, MO0.575
March 155:29 PM CDTEF1Macoupin, IL6.3300
March 155:35 PM CDTEF0Monroe, IL8.7160
March 155:38 PM CDTEF1Montgomery, IL7.10
March 155:43 PM CDTEF1Lawrence, AR10.5200
March 155:47 PM CDTEF1Saint Clair, IL0.6225
March 155:47 PM CDTEF1Montgomery, IL3.6300$500
March 155:55 PM CDTEF1Montgomery, IL7.80
March 155:58 PM CDTEF0Greene, AR4.5100
March 156:02 PM CDTUnratedArkansas, AR2.450
March 156:02 PM CDTEF1Montgomery, IL13.690
March 156:07 PM CDTEF0Greene, AR2.2100
March 156:12 PM CDTEF1Greene, AR3.0150
March 156:18 PM CDTEF1Christian, IL1.480$300
March 156:19 PM CDTEF1Bollinger, MO7.8100
March 156:24 PM CDTEF1Clay, AR2.0130
March 156:29 PM CDTEF1Clinton, IL4.250
March 156:32 PM CDTEF1Cape Girardeau, MO0.550
March 156:37 PM CDTEF0Moultrie, IL2.250$20
March 156:42 PM CDTEF1Moultrie, IL5.350$45
March 156:44 PM CDTEF0Dunklin, MO2.975
March 156:46 PM CDTEF1Jackson, IL0.175
March 156:54 PM CDTEF0Douglas, IL2.280$70
March 157:02 PM CDTEF0Jackson, IL0.150
March 157:03 PM CDTEF1Douglas, IL2.370$25
March 157:06 PM CDTEF1Douglas, IL11.470
March 158:05 PM CDTEF0Richland, IL2.040
March 158:17 PM CDTEF1Alcorn, MS2.5100
March 159:35 PM CDTEF0Montgomery, TN5.1200
March 159:45 PM CDTEF0Logan, KY0.840
March 159:59 PM CDTEF0Butler, KY4.650
March 1510:04 PM CDTEF1Grayson, KY17.8300
March 1510:06 PM CDTEF1Maury, TN16.5500
March 1510:06 PM CDTEF1Warren, KY2.240
March 1511:24 PM EDTEF1Hardin, KY4.0100
March 1511:29 PM EDTEF1Hardin, KY13.5200
March 1510:48 PM CDTEF1Lauderdale, AL to TN14.6400
March 1512:35 AM CDTEF1Clinton, KY1.3200

What this means

Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. A survey can be revised, so the rating, the path and the casualties can all still change.

Sources

NWS Damage Assessment Toolkit, the record the survey teams file from the damage, and NOAA Storm Prediction Center storm reports. Neither is the official database for 2026, which SPC publishes in the spring of 2027.