Following two rounds of storm fronts passing through Tuesday, tornado warnings for central Ohio counties have now expired. However, a tornado watch and flood advisory remain in effect until early Wednesday morning for several counties in the region.
Until 1 a.m. Wednesday, fifteen counties in Ohio, including three in central Ohio (Fairfield, Licking, and Pickaway), were under a tornado watch. Additionally, a flood advisory is in place until 1:15 a.m. Wednesday for Franklin, Delaware, Madison, and Union counties due to expected flooding from heavy rainfall accompanying the storms.
The most recent tornado warning in central Ohio expired at 11:45 p.m. Tuesday for Licking County, as a storm with potential tornadic activity and hail moved across the county. While there were no immediate reports of tornadoes in central Ohio, ongoing rain and lightning overnight made assessing damage unfeasible.
Earlier in the evening, tornado sightings and warnings were reported across the state. Tornadoes were sighted near Morrow in Warren County at 10:18 p.m., New Bremen in Auglaize County around 9 p.m., Newberry Township in Miami County at 8:54 p.m., and near Bradford in Darke and Miami counties at 8:48 p.m. Confirmation of these sightings and any associated damage will be determined by assessment teams from the National Weather Service.
After the initial storms on Tuesday afternoon, power outages affected over 3,100 AEP customers, primarily in Franklin County. However, following the more severe storms Tuesday night, only scattered outages impacting fewer than 50 customers remained as of 12:01 a.m. Wednesday, with restoration expected by 4 a.m.
Looking ahead, the NWS Wilmington forecasts a stormy week:
- Wednesday: Mostly sunny with a high near 83. Chance of showers and thunderstorms Wednesday night.
- Thursday: Showers and thunderstorms likely, mainly before 2 p.m., then a chance of showers and thunderstorms. High near 75.
- Thursday Night: Chance of showers and thunderstorms before 11 p.m., then slight chance of showers. Mostly cloudy with a low around 50.
- Friday: Chance of showers after 2 p.m. Partly sunny with a high near 64.
- Friday Night: Chance of showers before 8 p.m. Partly cloudy with a low around 45.
- Saturday: Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after 2 p.m. Mostly sunny with a high near 66.
- Saturday Night: Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm before 8 p.m., then chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy with a low around 48.
- Sunday: Chance of showers. Mostly sunny with a high near 69.
- Sunday Night: Partly cloudy with a low around 49.
- Monday: Chance of showers. Mostly sunny with a high near 74.
