Overview
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On March 31st, two rounds of strong to severe storms moved through the area. The first round moved through in the early afternoon and a second, more potent round followed in the evening between 6-9 PM EDT. Clusters of strong to severe storms produced wind gusts of 55-65 mph and 1" diameter hail on the evening of March 31st. A brief EF-1 tornado also occurred in Defiance County southeast of Hicksville, OH. Numerous showers and storms brought 2-4" of rain to the area from the evening of March 31st to the early morning hours of April 1st. This page was last updated on April 2nd at 6:30 AM EDT. |
Tornadoes
Select a tornado from the table to zoom into the track and view more information. The default table view is limited to 8 tracks, but can be scrolled by a mouse wheel or dynamically expanded. Additionally, the table can fill the entire window by clicking the small circular expanding arrow icon at the very top right of the table and returned to its original size by clicking the button again. The side information panel that opens over the map can be closed using the "X" on the upper right corner of the pop-up. Zoom into the map and click damage points to see detailed information and pictures from the surveys.
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NOTE: times shown below are local to your device's time zone. |
The Enhanced Fujita (EF) Scale classifies tornadoes into the following categories:
| EF0 Weak 65-85 mph |
EF1 Moderate 86-110 mph |
EF2 Significant 111-135 mph |
EF3 Severe 136-165 mph |
EF4 Extreme 166-200 mph |
EF5 Catastrophic 200+ mph |
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| Tornadoes that fail to impact any ratable damage indicators on the EF-Scale are rated EF-Unknown (EF-U) | |||||
Wind Damage & Hail Reports
Wind Damage
Wind gusts of 50 to 65 mph were observed with strong to severe storms on the evening of March 31st. Sporadic wind damage occurred across northern Indiana and northwest Ohio with reports of barns damaged and trees down. Numerous shelf cloud photos were also received from across northern Indiana and northwest Ohio.
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| Shelf cloud near Larwill, IN looking west on US 30 (NWS IWX Meteorologist Maddi Johnson) | A barn was damaged on Packerton Road north of North Manchester, IN (Laura Melton Herring) | A large pine tree was snapped in Mentone, IN (Amber Day) | Shelf cloud near Scott, OH (Brandon Hernandez - NW Ohio Storm Chasers) |
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| Damage to a barn on Jericho Rd southeast of Hicksville, OH (NWS IWX Storm Survey) | Several power poles were snapped on the Defiance/Paulding County line (NWS IWX Storm Survey) | A grain bin was destroyed on Fountain Rd near Sherwood, OH (NWS IWX Storm Survey) | A view of the Maumee River in Antwerp, OH. The river rose 9ft in 24 hours from March 31st to April 1st! (Dawn Hoobler) |
Hail
Severe storms produced hail around 1" in diameter across northern Indiana along and south of US 30 on the evening of March 31st.
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| Hail covered the ground in Claypool, IN (Jon K Lippe) | Hail up to 1" fell in Claypool, IN (Jon K Lippe) | Hail of varying sizes up to 1" south of Warsaw (Matt Alexander) | Half dollar size hail (just larger than a quarter) south of Warsaw, IN (Matt Alexander) |
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| Quarter size hail in Mentone, IN (Sarah Kuhn Kiphart) | Hail up to 1" covering the ground near Palestine Lake (Staci Michelle Ramirez) | Quarter size hail in Mentone, IN (Susan Smith) | Hail damaged a car in Mentone, IN (Susan Smith) |
Storm Reports
Preliminary Local Storm Report...Summary
National Weather Service Northern Indiana
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
1248 PM Lightning 2 NNE Georgetown 41.76N 86.21W
03/31/2026 St. Joseph IN Broadcast Media
Lightning struck a home and started a fire
along Galaxy Drive in Granger. Delayed
report. Time estimated via radar.
1255 PM Lightning 2 NE South Bend 41.69N 86.24W
03/31/2026 St. Joseph IN Broadcast Media
Lightning struck a home in the 1000 block of
Notre Dame Avenue. Delayed report. Time
estimated via radar.
0540 PM Hail Knox 41.29N 86.62W
03/31/2026 M0.70 Inch Starke IN Public
0551 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg Culver 41.22N 86.42W
03/31/2026 Marshall IN Amateur Radio
Tree downed near Washington Street and
Plymouth Street. Time estimated from radar.
0557 PM Lightning 2 N Wallen 41.20N 85.16W
03/31/2026 Allen IN Public
Delayed report. Lightning struck a home in a
neighborhood off of Carroll Rd and caused
damage to the siding. Time estimated via
radar and NCEI lightning data.
0603 PM Tstm Wnd Gst 1 S Tippecanoe 41.20N 86.11W
03/31/2026 M58 MPH Marshall IN Public
dime size hail also reported.
0605 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 1 N Talma 41.17N 86.31W
03/31/2026 Fulton IN Public
Photo on Facebook of a tree uprooted onto a
house n SR 110 on the Marshall and Fulton
County line. No injuries. Time estimated via
radar.
0610 PM Hail Bruce Lake Station 41.07N 86.42W
03/31/2026 M0.75 Inch Fulton IN 911 Call Center
0617 PM Hail Burket 41.16N 85.97W
03/31/2026 M1.00 Inch Kosciusko IN Emergency Mngr
0618 PM Hail Mentone 41.17N 86.04W
03/31/2026 M1.00 Inch Kosciusko IN Public
0620 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg Beaver Dam Lake 41.09N 85.97W
03/31/2026 Kosciusko IN Public
Picture on Facebook of large tree branches
down near Beaver Dam Lake. Public report
also says a barn was damaged. Time estimated
via radar.
0620 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 1 E Beaver Dam 41.09N 86.00W
03/31/2026 Kosciusko IN Public
Photo on Facebook showing a roof torn off of
a large animal barn north of Akron near
Beaver Dam. Time estimated via radar.
0620 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 1 WSW Beaver Dam Lake 41.09N 85.99W
03/31/2026 Kosciusko IN Public
Photo on Facebook of several large trees
down and numerous other smaller limbs. Time
estimated via radar.
0621 PM Hail 1 ESE Palestine 41.17N 85.94W
03/31/2026 M1.00 Inch Kosciusko IN Public
Quarter size hail at Palestine Lake. Time
estimated via radar.
0624 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 1 NNW Akron 41.05N 86.03W
03/31/2026 Fulton IN Public
Corrects time of previous tstm wnd dmg
report from 1 NNW Akron. Roof damage to a
home in Akron. Time estimated via radar.
0624 PM Hail 3 SW Winona Lake 41.18N 85.85W
03/31/2026 M1.00 Inch Kosciusko IN Public
0624 PM Hail 3 WSW Winona Lake 41.20N 85.86W
03/31/2026 M1.25 Inch Kosciusko IN Public
Photo showing hail just larger than a
quarter south of Warsaw. Time estimated via
radar.
0625 PM Hail Claypool 41.13N 85.88W
03/31/2026 M1.00 Inch Kosciusko IN Public
Photo on X shows hail up to quarter size in
Claypool. Time estimated via radar.
0626 PM Hail 2 S Claypool 41.10N 85.88W
03/31/2026 M1.00 Inch Kosciusko IN Public
1 inch hail on the south side of Burket.
Time estimated via radar.
0626 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 2 ENE Beaver Dam Lake 41.10N 85.94W
03/31/2026 Kosciusko IN Emergency Mngr
Tree downed 950 S between 500 and 600 W.
Time estimated from radar.
0626 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg Mentone 41.17N 86.04W
03/31/2026 Kosciusko IN Fire Dept/Rescue
Corrects time of previous tstm wnd dmg
report from Mentone. Several trees down in
Mentone. time estimated via radar.
0628 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 3 SSE Beaver Dam Lake 41.06N 85.96W
03/31/2026 Kosciusko IN Public
Roof damage to home between Akron and Silver
Lake. Time estimated via radar.
0630 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 3 NNW North Manchester 41.04N 85.80W
03/31/2026 Wabash IN Public
Corrects time of previous tstm wnd dmg
report from 3 NNW North Manchester. Photo on
Facebook of damage to a barn on Packerton Rd
near North Manchester. Time estimated via
radar.
0631 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg North Manchester 41.01N 85.77W
03/31/2026 Wabash IN Public
Corrects time of previous tstm wnd dmg
report from North Manchester. Several large
tree branches snapped in North Manchester.
Time estimated via radar.
0642 PM Hail South Whitley 41.09N 85.63W
03/31/2026 M0.70 Inch Whitley IN Public
Time estimated via radar.
0653 PM Tstm Wnd Gst 3 SW Wallen 41.13N 85.21W
03/31/2026 E60 MPH Allen IN Amateur Radio
0655 PM Tstm Wnd Gst 4 NE Fort Wayne 41.12N 85.08W
03/31/2026 M61 MPH Allen IN Amateur Radio
0658 PM Hail 3 NE Fort Wayne 41.11N 85.12W
03/31/2026 E0.75 Inch Allen IN Public
Report from mPING: Dime (0.75 in.).
0659 PM Hail 4 SW Wallen 41.11N 85.19W
03/31/2026 E1.00 Inch Allen IN Public
Report from mPING: Quarter (1.00 in.).
0701 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg Spencerville 41.28N 84.92W
04/01/2026 De Kalb IN Public
Photo on Facebook showing a large pine tree
uprooted. Time estimated via radar. Delayed
report.
0703 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 2 SSW Hicksville 41.27N 84.79W
03/31/2026 Defiance OH 911 Call Center
dispatch reports roof blown off and barn
blown down.
0710 PM Tstm Wnd Gst 3 SE Hicksville 41.26N 84.73W
03/31/2026 M63 MPH Defiance OH Mesonet
Corrects previous report from 3 SE
Hicksville. Mesonet station DVI11214
Hicksville.
0710 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg Hicksville 41.30N 84.77W
03/31/2026 Defiance OH Broadcast Media
Photo relayed by broadcast media of metal
roofing thrown into a nearby field in
Hicksville. Time estimated via radar.
0710 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 3 SE Hicksville 41.26N 84.73W
03/31/2026 Defiance OH Mesonet
Mesonet station DVI11214 Hicksville.
0712 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 3 WSW Mark Center 41.27N 84.69W
03/31/2026 Defiance OH Public
Barn damaged near Jericho and Roselawn
Roads. Time estimated via radar.
0720 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 2 WSW Sherwood 41.28N 84.59W
03/31/2026 Defiance OH Public
Tree down on SR 127. Time estimated via
radar.
0722 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg Sherwood 41.29N 84.56W
03/31/2026 Defiance OH Public
multiple power poles and lines down in
Sherwood. Time estimated via radar.
0723 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 2 SSW Independence 41.27N 84.31W
03/31/2026 Defiance OH 911 Call Center
dispatch reports roof blown off.
0724 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 1 N Sherwood 41.30N 84.55W
03/31/2026 Defiance OH Public
Trees down at SR 127 and SR 18. Time
estimated via radar.
0725 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 4 WNW Arthur 41.22N 84.43W
03/31/2026 Defiance OH Public
Large tree uprooted onto home at the
intersection of Cromley Rd and SR 111. Time
estimated via radar.
0726 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg Scott 40.99N 84.58W
03/31/2026 Van Wert OH Fire Dept/Rescue
Several reports of powerlines down in and
around Scott. Time estimated via radar.
0727 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg Defiance 41.28N 84.36W
03/31/2026 Defiance OH Public
Very large tree fell onto car in Defiance.
Unknown if any injuries. Time estimated via
radar.
0730 PM Flood 1 ESE Warsaw 41.24N 85.83W
03/31/2026 Kosciusko IN Public
Video on Facebook showing high water on
Market Street outside of Warsaw Bowling.
Water estimated to be about 12 inches deep.
Delayed report.
0728 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg Independence 41.30N 84.30W
03/31/2026 Defiance OH Local Official
Dispatch reports roof blown off in
Independence. Time estimated via radar.
0738 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg 1 WNW Holgate 41.25N 84.15W
03/31/2026 Henry OH Trained Spotter
Tree down at SR 18 and Township Rd 15. Time
estimated via radar.
0750 PM Hail 1 WSW Tunker 41.04N 85.58W
03/31/2026 M0.70 Inch Whitley IN Trained Spotter
0750 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg Rimer 40.89N 84.21W
03/31/2026 Putnam OH Emergency Mngr
power lines downed.
0750 PM Hail 1 WSW Tunker 41.04N 85.58W 03/31/2026 M0.70 Inch Whitley IN Trained Spotter
0800 PM Tstm Wnd Dmg Elida 40.79N 84.20W
03/31/2026 Allen OH Utility Company
9 power poles downed in Elida. Delayed
report. Time estimated via radar.
1030 PM Flood 3 S Steubenville 41.48N 85.03W
03/31/2026 De Kalb IN Law Enforcement
Delayed report. Driver drove into high water
on County Road 35, hydroplaned, and crashed
into nearby trees. 1 injury.
0500 AM Flood 3 N Ege 41.33N 85.28W
04/01/2026 Noble IN Law Enforcement
Delayed report. A large sinkhole formed
around 5 AM this morning due to heavy
rainfall at the intersection of South 700
East and East Hopewell Road.
0845 AM Flood 2 E Arcola 41.10N 85.26W
04/01/2026 Allen IN Broadcast Media
Local media shares picture of water over the
road just east of the intersection of Arcola
Rd and Yellow River Rd. Unknown how deep the
water is.
1200 PM Flood Avilla 41.37N 85.24W
04/01/2026 Noble IN Public
Several reports of road closures on the
southwest side of Avilla due to high water.
Also saw a picture on Facebook of high water
over and along SR 8 on the east side of
town.
0145 PM Flood Dunfee 41.09N 85.34W
04/01/2026 Allen IN Public
Photo on Facebook showing high water at the
intersection of County Line Road and Bass
Road on the far west side of Fort Wayne this
afternoon. Report estimates water to be 18
inches deep.
0930 PM Flood 2 WSW Ridinger Lake 41.25N 85.70W
04/01/2026 Kosciusko IN NWS Employee
Standing water observed in numerous fields
on SR 13, especially between East Old Road
30 and East 150 North. Lots of standing
water in ditches and along the roadway as
well.
Radar
Storms initially began as discrete cells in north-central Indiana before growing upscale and becoming a linear bowing segment.
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| A supercell moves through southern Kosciusko County, IN at 6:20 PM EDT on March 31st | A 3D volume scan also at 6:20 PM EDT showing the impressive hail core south of Warsaw, IN | A line of storms then congeals together and brings strong wind gusts in excess of 60 mph to the northeast side of Fort Wayne, IN around 7 PM EDT on March 31st | The storms then progress into northwest Ohio where strong rotation is evident between Hicksville and Sherwood in Defiance County around 7:10 PM EDT on March 31st |
Rain Reports
Public Information Statement National Weather Service Northern Indiana 616 AM EDT Thu Apr 2 2026 ...2 DAY RAINFALL AMOUNTS AS OF 6:15 AM ON APRIL 2ND... Location Amount Time/Date Provider ...Indiana... ...Adams County... Berne 2.90 in 0730 PM 04/01 Public 0.8 N Linn Grove 1.63 in 0445 AM 04/02 HADS ...Allen County... 4 WSW Woodburn 4.05 in 1200 AM 04/02 Public FORT WAYNE 4.03 in 0535 AM 04/02 CWOP 5 SSW Leo-Cedarville 4.00 in 1100 AM 04/01 Public SPENCERVILLE 3.78 in 0545 AM 04/02 CWOP 4 SW Leo-Cedarville 3.76 in 1100 AM 04/01 Public 1 N Fort Wayne 3.09 in 1000 AM 04/01 Broadcast Media FORT WAYNE 2.62 in 0537 AM 04/02 CWOP FORT WAYNE 2.57 in 0556 AM 04/02 CWOP 4 S Tuckers Corner 2.07 in 0550 AM 04/02 AWS 2 E Nine Mile 2.04 in 0200 AM 04/02 Official NWS Obs Fort Wayne International Ap 1.99 in 0554 AM 04/02 ASOS ...Blackford County... MONTPELIER 1.39 in 0538 AM 04/02 CWOP ...Cass County... Logansport 1.11 in 0545 AM 04/02 CWOP Walton 0.91 in 0530 AM 04/02 CWOP Galveston 0.83 in 0530 AM 04/02 CWOP ...De Kalb County... Auburn 4.01 in 1000 AM 04/01 Public Auburn 0.2 SE 3.58 in 0800 PM 04/01 COCORAHS Waterloo 3.00 in 0600 PM 04/01 Public Corunna 2.80 in 1130 AM 04/01 Public ...Elkhart County... Goshen 1.38 in 0553 AM 04/02 ASOS Goshen 3 SW 0.88 in 0700 PM 04/01 COOP Jamestown 0.75 in 0600 AM 04/02 CWOP Elkhart 4.8 SW 0.54 in 0500 AM 04/02 COCORAHS Elkhart Municipa 0.39 in 0555 AM 04/02 AWOS ...Fulton County... Rochester 0.10 in 0555 AM 04/02 AWOS ...Grant County... MARION 1.82 in 0537 AM 04/02 CWOP Grant County Municipal Apt 1.39 in 0535 AM 04/02 AWOS ...Huntington County... 1.7 E Bowerstown 1.57 in 0500 AM 04/02 HADS Huntington 1.31 in 0535 AM 04/02 AWOS 2.4 NW Warren 1.24 in 0445 AM 04/02 HADS ...Jay County... 1 N Portland 1.60 in 0555 AM 04/02 AWOS ...Kosciusko County... 2 N North Webster 2.94 in 0200 AM 04/02 Official NWS Obs Warsaw Muni 2.75 in 0555 AM 04/02 AWOS 2.3 N North Webster 2.34 in 0159 AM 04/02 COOP 1 SSE Clunette 2.28 in 0550 AM 04/02 AWS Syracuse 1.61 in 0555 AM 04/02 AWS ...La Porte County... 0.8 W La Porte 0.35 in 1258 AM 04/02 COOP La Porte 0.20 in 0555 AM 04/02 AWOS ...Marshall County... 1.2 W Plymouth 2.26 in 0545 AM 04/02 COOP ...Miami County... AMBOY 1.62 in 0545 AM 04/02 CWOP Amboy 1.06 in 0530 AM 04/02 CWOP Peru 1.04 in 0530 AM 04/02 HADS Grissom AFB Peru 0.74 in 0355 AM 04/02 AWOS ...Noble County... Ligonier 2.16 in 0554 AM 04/02 AWS Cosperville 1.01 in 0530 AM 04/02 HADS ...Pulaski County... 1.3 SW Ora 2.62 in 0545 AM 04/02 COOP ...St. Joseph County... South Bend International Ap 0.42 in 0554 AM 04/02 ASOS South Bend 0.33 in 1158 PM 04/01 COOP 0.9 W Roseland 0.28 in 0515 AM 04/02 COOP ...Steuben County... 0.7 E Hamilton 1.02 in 0545 AM 04/02 HADS ...Wabash County... 3.0 SE Lagro 1.65 in 0515 AM 04/02 HADS 0.7 SE Wabash 1.52 in 0530 AM 04/02 HADS ...Wells County... Bluffton 1.56 in 0545 AM 04/02 HADS ...White County... Monticello - White County Ar 0.71 in 0555 AM 04/02 AWOS Norway 0.46 in 0545 AM 04/02 HADS ...Whitley County... 1 W Blue Lake 5.50 in 1000 PM 04/01 Public Columbia City 5.50 in 1100 PM 04/01 Public ...Michigan... ...Berrien County... Stevensville 1.7 SSE 0.96 in 0502 AM 04/02 COCORAHS Benton Harbor 0.32 in 0553 AM 04/02 ASOS 3.7 S Watervliet 0.21 in 0500 AM 04/02 UCOOP ...Branch County... 1 SSW Coldwater 0.52 in 0553 AM 04/02 AWS QUINCY 0.35 in 0540 AM 04/02 CWOP Coldwater 0.07 in 0556 AM 04/02 AWOS ...St. Joseph County... 2.0 SE Mendon 0.20 in 0500 AM 04/02 UCOOP Three Rivers 0.16 in 0555 AM 04/02 AWOS Sturgis Kirsch 0.04 in 0556 AM 04/02 AWOS ...Ohio... ...Allen County... Lima 1 N 1.87 in 0536 AM 04/02 CWOP Bluffton 1.81 in 0535 AM 04/02 CWOP 2 WNW Westminster 1.25 in 0553 AM 04/02 AWOS ...Defiance County... Defiance 4.50 in 1000 AM 04/01 Public 1 NE Hicksville 3.60 in 1230 PM 04/01 Public ...Fulton County... 4.6 SW Morenci (R2) (R2) 1.01 in 0500 AM 04/02 COOP ...Henry County... DESHLER 0.85 in 0530 AM 04/02 CWOP ...Paulding County... Oakwood 3.40 in 1045 AM 04/01 Public ...Van Wert County... 2 N Wetsel 2.90 in 0550 AM 04/02 AWS Van Wert 2.57 in 0540 AM 04/02 CWOP 1 WNW Convoy 2.14 in 0550 AM 04/02 AWS Van Wert 2.12 in 0536 AM 04/02 CWOP Observations are collected from a variety of sources with varying equipment and exposures. We thank all volunteer weather observers for their dedication. Not all data listed are considered official.
Environment
A cold front slowly moved southeast and stalled over the area on the evening of March 31st (Figure 1). Amid zonal flow aloft and with upper level divergence (Figure 2 & 3), storms were able to develop between 6-8 PM EDT on March 31st. This was a somewhat high shear, low CAPE setup which 40-50 kts of bulk shear and about 500-1000 J/kg of surface CAPE (Figure 7). Mid level lapse rates were decent at 6 to 6.5 C/km, which supported an initial threat for hail in northern Indiana (Figure 4). There was a lot of low level wind shear, as evidenced by the localized 150-250 m2/s2 0-1 km SRH on the evening of March 31st and LCLs were below 1000m (Figures 5 and 6). As the frontal boundary stalled, heavy rain and flooding materialized throughout the evening with strong 850 mb transport and precipitable water values up to 1.4" (Figures 8 and 9).
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| Figure 1: 21Z March 31st WPC Surface Analysis | Figure 2: 00Z April 1st 500mb chart | Figure 3: 00Z April 1st 300mb chart |
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| Figure 4: 22Z March 31st Mid Level Lapse Rates | Figure 5: 23Z March 31st LCLs | Figure 6: 23Z March 31st 0-1 km SRH |
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| Figure 7: 23Z March 31st 0-6km shear | Figure 8: 00Z April 1st Precipitable Water | Figure 9: 00Z April 1st 850mb Moisture Transport |
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| Figure 10: Severe Thunderstorm Watch #82 issued at 10:25 AM EDT | Figure 11: Severe Thunderstorm Watch #82 issued at 7:00 PM EDT | Figure 12: Severe Thunderstorm Watches Year-To-Date. As of March 31st, us and NWS Chicago lead the entire US for most Severe Thunderstorm Watches for 2026! |
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| Figure 13: SPC Mesoscale Discussion #0305 issued at 11:55 AM EDT | Figure 14: SPC Mesoscale Discussion #0306 issued at 12:43 PM EDT | Figure 15: SPC Mesoscale Discussion #0309 issued at 3:44 PM EDT |
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| Figure 16: SPC Mesoscale Discussion #0314 issued 7:42 PM EDT | Figure 17: WPC Mesoscale Discussion #0067 issued at 6:47 PM EDT | Figure 18: WPC Mesoscale Discussion #0069 issued at 10:55 PM EDT |
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