Severe storms with heavy rain and high winds raced through central Ohio late Wednesday afternoon and evening, but there were no initial reports of injuries or major damage.
The National Weather Service had issued tornado warnings for some central Ohio counties as the storm system moved through, reporting radar-indicated rotation wrapped amid the fast-moving storms. Hail fell in some areas as a result of the storm.
A tornado watch issued for central Ohio expired at 7 p.m. as the severe weather moved on into east central and northeastern Ohio counties.
Suspected tornado damage reported elsewhere
There were reports of at least one or two suspected tornadoes with damage in Portage County in northeastern Ohio and a suspected tornado in Bucyrus in north central Ohio.
Videos and photos posted to X (formerly Twitter) showed what appeared to be a tornado on the ground and severe damage to a home, barn and another outbuilding in Windham, a village in eastern Portage County. Additional damage was reported from a tornado in Garrettsville in the northeastern part of the county.
In north central Ohio about 65 miles north of Columbus, The Bucyrus Telegraph Forum, a Gannett Ohio sister newspaper to The Dispatch, reported high winds from the storms there had caused serious, significant damage in downtown Bucyrus and knocked out power to a large area there.
The NWS will send out survey teams beginning Thursday to areas where suspected tornadoes were reported to confirm them and rate their intensity on the Enhanced Fujita scale.
Central Ohio appeared to escape any major damage.
Fairfield County Sheriff's Office reported multiple trees or large branches down from the storm, with some blocking side roads but no major arteries.
The Licking County Regional Communications Center reported that strong winds had brought wires down in Fallsbury Township and brought trees down on utility lines in Granville Township.
Delaware County Sheriff's Office said it had no reports of severe damage as of 6:30 p.m. However, Tyler Beckman, a central Ohio storm chaser, posted photos on X (formerly Twitter) showing wind damage to homes and a tree near the intersection of Route 605 and Fancher Road in Harlem Township in the county.
Pickaway County Sheriff's Office reported a downed tree that temporarily blocked one lane of Route 752 in Walnut Township, but it was removed and there were no other storm damage reports.
Franklin County, Union County and Madison County sheriff's offices told The Dispatch they received no storm damage reports.
The heavy rain did cause flooding again on the Route 161 westbound exit underpass to Interstate 270 southbound on Columbus' Northeast Side, forcing closure of the exit ramp for a time.
AEP warned its customers prior to Wednesday's storms that the severe weather may cause power outages and urged customers to be prepared. At one point, the AEP outage map showed more than 8,000 customers without power. As of 6:15 p.m., however, AEP's outage map showed small scattered outages with the largest two areas in Columbus involving nearly 1,500 customers.
Ohio already ahead of average yearly tornado total before storms
Prior to Wednesday, the National Weather Service had reported a total of 28 tornadoes so far this year in Ohio, which is a half-dozen above the yearly average of 22 tornadoes. Nine tornadoes each were recorded on Feb. 28, March 14 and April 2 and one on March 5.
One of the March 14 tornadoes hit the Indian Lake area, killing three people in Lakeview, injuring others and causing devastating damage.
What's the forecast ahead?
After a positively balmy work week, areas of patchy frost will be possible Saturday and Sunday night in Columbus and around central Ohio. Here's the forecast for the rest of the week.
More:Ohio leads the nation for tornadoes in 2024. And the season is just beginning
Weather forecast for the week of April 17, 2024
Keep those raincoats at the ready for the next few days.
- Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 76. West wind 6 to 8 mph.
- Thursday Night: A chance of showers before 11 p.m., then a chance of showers and thunderstorms between 11 p.m. and 2 a.m., then showers and possibly a thunderstorm after 2 a.m. Low around 58. South wind 6 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
- Friday: Showers and thunderstorms before 11 a.m., with a slight chance of showers between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. High near 64. Northwest wind 10 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
- Friday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 44.
- Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 57.
- Saturday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 36.
- Sunday: Patchy frost before 8 a.m. Otherwise, mostly sunny, with a high near 57.
- Sunday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 37.
- Monday: Sunny, with a high near 63.
- Monday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 44.
- Tuesday: A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 64. Chance of precipitation is 40%.
Here's how to check for AEP, Columbus power outages
American Electric Power (AEP) Ohio offers a live-updatedoutage map on their website.
The AEP website also contains an area where customers canreport outagesand downed power lines. Remain a safe distance from downed power lines if you see them.
Columbus Division of Power customers can also check anoutage mapon the city's website here.
If you see your area on the map, there is no need to report your outage and the Division of Power is actively working on it, according to the website. If you are experiencing an outage not shown on the map, please call them at (614) 645-7627 to report the outage.
Dispatch reporters Bethany Bruner and Cole Behrens contributed to this report.
NHart@dispatch.com
@PartofMyHart
