Severe weather wallops central, eastern US, forcing school closures and disrupting travel
One of the biggest storms so far in 2026 has upended travel and daily routines across dozens of states, with over 700 reports of severe weather from Sunday through Monday.
Residents of Bonnertown, Tennessee, woke to widespread damage after a confirmed EF-1 tornado struck late on the evening of March 15.
A massive storm has shut down travel, cut power to hundreds of thousands and disrupted daily routines across the central and eastern United States -- in part due to severe thunderstorms and tornadoes.
"A major storm has impacted the eastern half of the United States this week," AccuWeather Meteorologist Peyton Simmers said. "The storm brought severe weather to portions of the South and the Eastern Seaboard, where damaging winds caused power outages."
The first round of powerful storms erupted Sunday, followed by more storms and strong winds across highly populated areas of the eastern U.S. Monday.
Schools across the eastern U.S. closed or planned for early dismissals Monday due to the risk of severe weather. There were additional closures and delayed openings Tuesday in some areas that received several inches of snow in the wake of Monday's storms.
A worker from the City of Bloomington closes a sidewalk along West Kirkwood Avenue after strong winds toppled a tree onto a house on March 15, 2026, in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Jeremy Hogan/Getty Images)
Over 4,300 flights were canceled, and another 18,000 delayed across the U.S. over the weekend, many of which connected to the triple-threat storm delivering severe weather, blizzard conditions and widespread winds across the U.S.
Wind howls across the East Coast Monday
Damaging winds were the biggest severe weather risk Monday from Florida through Pennsylvania, felling trees and disrupting travel, especially during the evening commute.
High winds contributed to the more than 500,000 power outages across the eastern U.S. on Tuesday morning, with most of the outages reported across Michigan, Pennsylvania and New York, according to PowerOutage.us.
Newark Airport clocked a wind gust of 71 mph, while New York City's JFK airport measured a gust as high as 73 mph. NOAA's Storm Prediction Center received over 300 reports of severe wind Monday into Monday night.
An EF0 tornado briefly touched down in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, with maximum winds of 85 mph. No severe injuries or fatalities were reported.
Storms wallop over a dozen states Sunday
The first wave of destructive storms ignited Sunday from Texas to Illinois, including areas hit hard by last week's severe weather outbreak.
Over 400 reports of severe weather were logged from the Gulf Coast states to the Ohio Valley Sunday, with damaging winds being the most widespread danger. Over 350 reports of severe winds were documented across 17 states, contributing to over 150,000 power outages across the South.
Extreme Meteorologist Dr. Reed Timmer intercepted one of the tornado-warned storms near Stuttgart, Arkansas, Sunday, where a rope tornado likely touched down.
Extreme Meteorologist Reed Timmer recorded a tornado spinning over Stuttgart, Arkansas, on March 15.
Cold air surged across the Mississippi Valley in the wake of Sunday's storms, causing temperatures to tumble into the 20s as far south as Texas and Alabama. Snow was reported as far south as Mississippi, although accumulations were limited to less than an inch in most areas.
The fresh blast of cold air could become dangerous for areas where power is out for several days following the severe weather. Low temperatures are forecast to drop below freezing across the region again Tuesday night before warmer air slowly returns later in the week.
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