On the evening hours of Thursday, March 14, 2024, an intense and deadly EF3 tornado impacted multiple towns and communities across Auglaize and Logan counties in Ohio. Significant to major damage occurred Fryburg, Lakeview, and Russells Point, killing three people and injuring 27 people along its path. The tornado caused $6 million in damage, and reached a peak width of . The tornado was a part of significant tornado outbreak that span from March 13 to March 15 and was the second strongest tornado of the outbreak, reaching an estimated peak winds of , and was the deadliest tornado of the outbreak.
The tornado initially touched down west of Fryburg at 7:29 p.m. EDT, quickly intensifying to low-end EF3 intensity. Several homes and a business were heavily damaged, trees were snapped or debarked, and many RV trailers were destroyed. The tornado tore through rural areas, impacting several farmsteads at EF1-EF2 intensities, carving cycloidal marks onto fields, and blowing down several trees and power poles. The tornado then went through Lakeview, heavily damaging or destroying multiple homes and businesses, severely debarking trees, and demolishing several mobile homes. Then the tornado impacted several neighborhoods along Indian Lake at EF2 intensity, damaging or destroying more manufactured homes, blowing down outbuildings, and inflicting moderate to severe damage to framed homes. Afterwards, the tornado traveled through rural areas and causing light-moderate damage to structures before dissipating at 8:16 p.m. EDT.
Meteorological Synopsis
On March 9, at 3:53 a.m. CST, the Storm Prediction Center issued a day 6 outlook over northeast Texas, the Ark-La-Tex region, and southeast Oklahoma, with a 15% probability for severe weather. An upper-low was expected to traverse over the southwest states, with moderately strong southwesterly winds aloft along with surface dewpoints reaching into the 60s east of the dryline and near southeast of the synoptic front across the southern plains to the Ozarks. The next day on March 10, the coverage of the 15% outline expanded.
On March 11, the medium range guidance models depicted a deep, positively-tilted upper trough traversing and spreading over the Western United States, with the troughing being anchored by a closed low over the lower Colorado River basin, with moderately strong mid-level flow traversing across the Southwest into the central and southern plains. A shortwave trough was expected to move northeasterly within a belt of stronger flow, albeit with some uncertainties with forecast timing, though the evolution of the surface low moving northeasterly ahead of the low and the cold front moving across southern and Central United States remained consistent. Before the cold front, a moist and unstable airmass and thunderstorms were forecasted to be along and ahead of the front, with the expected evolution being initiation at the triple point in the late morning to early afternoon hours, with moderate southwesterly flow aloft and buoyancy leading to the development of strong to severe thunderstorms, with the main hazards expected to be large hail and damaging wind gusts.
On March 12, at 2:31 a.m. CST, an expansive slight risk was issued, stretching from Texas up to Eastern Iowa, with a 15% probability for severe weather, with hatched areas of significant weather for the Ark-La-Tex region, and northern Missouri, southern Iowa, and western Illinois. A surface low was forecasted to propagate over the Nebraska, Iowa, and Missouri border region, with the cold front extending from the low across eastern Kansas into the Texas Hill Country. A large warm sector was expected ahead of the cold front, extending from the northern to southern Mississippi River valleys, to westward into the southern Plains, with showers and thunderstorms expected to be present in the warm sector, though early-morning storms weren't expected. The warm sector was expected to destabilize, with two areas of potential severe weather in the Midwest and southern Plains. In the Midwest risk, dewpoints in the upper 50s were expected south of the warm front, with adequate low-level moisture and decent to strong buoyancy were expected in the early afternoon, with surface temperature reaching into the 70s along with cold-mid level temperatures resulting in steep mid-level lapse rates. Low-level convergence could result in convective initiation and the development of supercells, with expectation of all hazards including tornadoes.
On March 14, at 1:00 a.m. CDT, an enhanced risk for hail and tornado was issued, including a 10% risk for tornado for Oklahoma, Missouri, and Arkansas, with a 5% risk for tornado across the mid-Mississippi Valley to Ohio and other parts of Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, and Missouri. Early morning showers and thunderstorms were expected, with most of them staying north of the warm front, with some threats of hail and damaging gusts. The early storms were expected to modulate the effective frontal zone and how severe the destabilization of the environment could be, lowering confidence for a supercell cluster, though the expansion of the steep, mid-level, lapse-rate plume, along with substantial deep-layer shear and hodograph enlargement, led to the increase in the 5% tornado risk.
Tornado summary Formation
At 7:27 p.m. EDT, the National Weather Service (NWS) office at Wilmington, Ohio issued a radar indicated tornado warning for Shelby, Auglaize, Logan, and Hardin counties. Soon, the tornado touched down west of Fryburg at 7:29 p.m. EDT, initially inflicting major damage to a farm building and minor roof damage to a home along Cemetery Road at EF0 intensity. The tornado intensified slightly, uprooting and snapping several trees at EF1-EF2 intensity. The tornado entered the northern parts of Fryburg, quickly intensifying to low-end EF3 strength, snapping or severely debarking several hardwood trees and multiple campers were lofted and destroyed. Afterwards, the Glacier Hill Clubhouse building was struck, receiving heavy damage, and leaving a few interior walls standing. A nearby home also received heavy damage, with most of the structure collapsing and leaving a few interior walls standing. Hardwood trees were snapped or debarked and another home had their exterior walls collapsed. Two injuries were inflicted to people in the resort.
The tornado exited the community, snapping and uprooting several trees and inflicting moderate roof damage to two farm homes. The tornado crossed Town Line Road, causing moderate roof damage was inflicted to a home. The tornado continued southeast, heavily damaging or destroying two outbuildings and snapping power poles at estimated windspeeds of . The tornado then impacted a farmstead near the community of Geyer, demolishing a couple of outbuildings and sweeping a couple of empty silos. The tornado impacted a home along Geyer Drive, blowing down the garage and inflicting moderate roof damage and several hardwood trees were snapped and uprooted. Then, the tornado struck a farmstead along County Road 65, damaging and heavily demolishing a couple of outbuildings, snapping wooden power poles, and uprooting and snapping trees. The tornado then impacted another farmstead along Wrestle Creek Road, inflicting moderate roof damage onto the farmhouse and demolishing an outbuilding.
Lakeview and Peak Intensity
Afterwards, the tornado began carving cycloidal marks onto the field before impacting a forest, snapping and uprooting multiple hardwood trees. The tornado intensified further as a farmstead along Valley Road was struck, blowing down an exterior wall of the farmhouse, snapping multiple trees on the property, and inflicting minimal roof damage to another farmhouse. Then the tornado went through a forested area snapping more trees. North of the community of Santa Fe, the tornado snapped wooden power poles and multiple trees as it crossed over into Logan County. The tornado carved more cycloidal marks onto fields as another farmstead was impacted, inflicting moderate roof damage to the home and snapping and uprooting trees. Then the tornado intensified as it impacted a farmstead along the intersection of Township Highway 85 and County Road 84, heavily damaging the farmhouse and demolishing several outbuildings at mid-range EF2 intensity. The tornado then plowed through a forested area at low-end EF3 intensity, severely debarking and snapping several hardwood trees.
At 7:50 p.m. EDT, the National Weather Service office at Wilmington, Ohio then issued a particularly dangerous situation (PDS) tornado warning for central Logan and northwestern Union counties. After crossing Township Road 83, the tornado entered the first neighborhood of Lakeview, impacting a forested area behind the a line of homes at low-end EF3 intensity, severely debarking and snapping several hardwood trees. Then the tornado impacted homes along Poplar Court at mid-range EF3 intensity, destroying a poorly-constructed home at windspeeds of . Multiple homes nearby suffered heavy losses to their exterior walls and several more residences suffered significant roof and structural damage. The tornado then went through downtown Lakeview at peak intensity, with estimated windspeed of , inflicting heavy destruction to a large, metal building system west of US 33. Along North Main Street; a laundromat was heavily damaged, two homes sustained intense roof damage, the community's municipal building was damaged, a library sustained significant roof damage, an old plastics building was destroyed, and a couple of low-rise buildings experienced exterior wall and roof damage.
Russells Point Another poorly-built home along North Oak Street was demolished at mid-range EF3 intensity, other homes along the road received significant damage, and several outbuildings were destroyed. The tornado continued trekking southeast, impacting the Geiger Mobile Home Park at mid-range EF2 intensity. Multiple single-wide mobile homes were damaged or destroyed, an 81-year-old woman and another 70-year-old woman were killed at this location. The tornado then impacted another mobile home park at mid-range EF2 intensity, rolling and demolishing several trailers and mobile homes, a framed home sustained significant roof damage and trees were snapped. Then the tornado tore through a neighborhood east of the mobile park, inflicting severe roof damage to many homes, destroying multiple mobile homes, damaging or destroying outbuildings, and inflicting moderate to significant tree damage. The tornado briefly intensified to low-end EF3 intensity along Township Highway 239, collapsing an exterior wall from a business, a large retail building across the business had its long roof span mostly damaged.