Beware March severe weather

 

NOAA's severe weather outlook for March 16, 2026

March typically sees an uptick in severe weather across the central and southern United States. There are specific criteria that make a thunderstorm “severe,” including the presence of any of the following: wind gusts of at least 58 mph; hail 1”/+ in diameter; or a tornado. Sometimes the strongest thunderstorms can have more than one type of severe weather. Here are some notable March severe weather outbreaks in recent years:

2025: A widespread multi-day severe weather outbreak occurred from March 14 to March 16. Severe weather was confirmed by NOAA from Texas to New York, including nearly 200 tornadoes. A total of 29 fatalities were reported with dozens more injured. This widespread and long-lasting outbreak illustrates that no part of the United States is immune to severe weather. It also underscores the importance of listening to your local meteorologists and emergency planners when dangerous weather threatens your community.

2024: A large-scale outbreak occurred on March 14 with over 400 severe weather reports from Texas to Pennsylvania. Over three dozen confirmed tornadoes touched down. The deadliest was an EF-3 in Ohio that had peak winds of 155 mph and caused three fatalities. Unusually large hail up to 4” in diameter was also reported in parts of Illinois and Oklahoma.

2023: A massive outbreak occurred on March 31 with over 700 confirmed severe weather reports, including over 160 tornadoes. The outbreak stretched from Iowa to Georgia and claimed two dozen lives with dozens more injuries. Hail over 3” in diameter fell in Illinois and multiple wind gusts over 70 mph were also reported.

2022: This outbreak spanned three days and covered a large swath of the United States with severe weather reports from Nebraska to Florida to Pennsylvania. The DMV (DC, Maryland and Virginia) was impacted on March 31 with a slew of severe weather reports. The National Weather Service confirmed an EF-0 tornado caused minor damage in Tysons Corner, Virginia. Meanwhile, another EF-0 tornado was confirmed in Centreville, Virginia. Both tornadoes had winds of less than 85 mph and were on the ground for less than a minute. Fortunately, no injuries were reported.

2020: An outbreak occurred on March 1 from Missouri to Tennessee. Large hail was reported with sightings of 2” to 3” in diameter. A series of tornadoes occurred late in the evening and continued into the early morning hours of March 2, primarily in Tennessee. A total of 20 tornadoes caused 29 fatalities, according to NOAA. The strongest tornado was an EF-4 in Putnam County, Tennessee, with winds between 166 mph and 200 mph.

While smartphone technology has greatly improved the ability to relay the latest critical weather news to the public, it isn’t 100% effective. That’s why getting a NOAA weather radio or adding the NOAA weather alerts app to your mobile devices is also a good idea.