A severe weather outbreak lasting multiple days resulted in over 90 tornadoes affecting 13 states, as well as damaging thunderstorm winds across the South, Midwest, and East. This event marked the largest severe weather occurrence in 2025 so far.
Between March 14 and 16, the National Weather Service confirmed a total of 91 tornadoes touching down in the U.S. during the three-day outbreak. Out of these, 41 tornadoes were classified as “strong,” causing at least EF2 damage on the Enhanced Fujita scale. The outbreak showcased a significant number of stronger tornadoes, indicating a major weather event. For comparison, a previous outbreak in early March in the South only produced 30 tornadoes, with just one classified as strong.
Damage assessments by NWS personnel are ongoing, with the possibility of the reported figures increasing in the coming days. Apart from the tornadoes, nearly 1,000 reports of large hail and damaging or strong thunderstorm winds were recorded during the outbreak. Local NWS offices issued over 900 tornado and severe thunderstorm warnings to help keep communities informed and safe.
The outbreak included three tornadoes classified as violent EF4, a rare occurrence in the yearly tornado count. Two of these violent tornadoes hit northern Arkansas on March 14, causing significant damage and injuries. Another EF4 tornado struck areas of southern Mississippi, resulting in fatalities and destruction along its 65-mile path.
Several long-track tornadoes were also observed during the outbreak, including an almost 87-mile path in northeast Arkansas and a 58-mile track from northern Arkansas into southeast Missouri. Arkansas experienced a total of 10 tornadoes, covering 228 miles of damage. The NWS-Paducah office highlighted the extensive tornado tracks in their forecast area, with the event ranking as the second most significant in their office’s history.
Notable damage was reported, including an EF2 tornado narrowly missing Lambert International Airport in the St. Louis metro area, as well as wind-driven hail causing destruction in O’Fallon, Illinois.
Minutes before an EF1 tornado touched down just northeast of the town, the same home in Paragould, Arkansas that was damaged by a late May 2024 tornado suffered another hit from an EF2 tornado just after midnight on March 15. In Alabama, an EF2 tornado caused a school bus to flip onto the roof of Winterboro High School gymnasium in Talladega County, resulting in one fatality. Additionally, an EF3 tornado wreaked havoc in Plantersville, heavily damaging homes and businesses and claiming two lives. The outbreak concluded with an EF1 tornado early on St. Patrick’s Day near Woodville, North Carolina, which destroyed three mobile homes and caused injuries to eight individuals, but thankfully, no fatalities. Jonathan Erdman, a senior meteorologist at weather.com with over two decades of experience in covering national and international weather, specializes in extreme and unusual weather phenomena. Connect with him on Bluesky, X (formerly Twitter), and Facebook.
