Winter Storm Bringing Widespread Hazardous Weather to the Eastern U.S.

A rapidly-intensifying winter storm continues to bring heavy snow, high winds, and blizzard conditions over the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes through today. An Arctic front will lead in a period of gusty to high winds and sharply colder temperatures over the entire eastern U.S. Heavy lake effect snow is then expected from Lakes Erie and Ontario through New Year's Day. Read More >

Overview

On the mid-afternoon of September 20th, a thunderstorms produced two different microbursts. The first occurred in Kosciusko County Indiana while the second occurred over Whitley County Indiana.

Two days later, an EF1 tornado occurred late in the day on September 22nd. No lightning was detected from this very shallow shower, but debris was detected on doppler radar. A storm damage survey was completed the following day.

September 22 Tornado
September 20 Kosciusko Co Microburst
September 20 Whitley Co Microburst

Tornadoes:

Tornado -Portland, IN
JAY COUNTY

Date	09/22/2024
Time (Local)	7:45 PM EDT
EF Rating	EF1
Est. Peak Winds	110
Path Length	2.74
Max Width	75
Injuries/Deaths	0/0
Summary: Following an EF-U tornado immediately to the west, A second stronger tornado developed immediately downstream near the intersection of W 75 S and Joan Dr and quickly gained intensity as it tracked east northeast, hitting the Portland high school which sustained considerable roof damage. Several homes nearby and further east on the west side of Portland sustained roof damage along with considerable tree damage noted along the track of this tornado. As the tornado was dissipating it caused extensive roof damage to the second story of the American Legion.


Corn was flattened by an EF-U tornado west of Jay County High School. (Sam Rhodehamel, Jay Co, EMA)	Jay County High School sustained significant roof damage. (NWS Storm Survey)	Damage to the second story of the American Legion in Portland. (Liz Braden, 21 Alive)	A semi truck trailer was toppled (NWS Storm Survey)

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

September 20th Kosciusko County Microburst:

In the mid-afternoon of September 20th, a microburst caused an approximately 10 mile swath of damage from just south of Leesburg, through Chapman Lake, east to Ridinger Lake. Numerous trees and limbs were down, some onto structures and power lines. Several roads were blocked with debris. Damage is consistent with 60 to 80 mph wind. The most concentrated damage occurred in the Chapman Lake area where 80 mph wind caused extensive damage.

Learn more about microbursts from NWS Birmingham, AL and NWS Louisville, KY.


Several trees were uprooted, including this one, at Chapman Lake (Hilary Kiser)	This home was dislodged from its foundation at Chapman Lake (Jane Serovy)	This tree was split in two at Barbee Lake (Julie Larson)	A graphical summary of the Kosciusko County Microburst

September 20th Whitley County Microburst:

On September 20th, the same storm that produced the extensive damage in portions of Kosciusko County continued into Whitley County. The majority of the damage occurred from NNW of Columbia City (Five Points area) southeast to the southeast side of State Route 205. Damage along this swath was more spread out with trees and some structures damaged in several non-continuous locations. Some crops were also damaged, especially in the Riley Road area. Damage is consistent with 60 to 70 mph wind gusts.

Learn more about microbursts from NWS Birmingham, AL and NWS Louisville, KY.


This structure sustained significant damage from the microburst (Whitley County EMA)	Tree damage was common, including several snapped trees at this location in Whitley County (Whitley County EMA)	An outbuilding had its garage doors blown in, followed by the exterior wall panels being blown out (Whitley County EMA)	A graphical summary of the Whitley County Microburst

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Winter Storm Bringing Widespread Hazardous Weather to the Eastern U.S.

Severe thunderstorms on September 20 and 22, 2024