Looking Back at the Wild Month of March Weather

March brought a little bit of everything to the table. From widespread tornado outbreaks to blizzard conditions to record heat waves, the month took the country on a wild ride. Here is a look back at the month that lived up to its reputation of delivering chaotic weather.

Three Tornado Outbreaks

As is typical for the month of March, severe weather ignited across the central U.S. in spades. According to the National Weather Service (NWS), three separate severe weather outbreaks were responsible for 177 tornadoes and nearly 1,800 reports of high winds and large hail.

The first outbreak ignited on March 5 - 7. This outbreak generated just 26 tornadoes; however, eight of them were rated as EF2 or higher. At least eight fatalities were confirmed as part of this early-month outbreak.

Another round of severe storms just a few days later tore through a large swath of the central, eastern, and southern U.S.. The March 9 - 12 outbreak spawned 100 twisters. One single supercell thunderstorm produced 12 separate tornadoes in Illinois and Indiana. This included an EF3 twister that killed at least three people and injured 11 more. This same storm cell also generated a hailstone that measured over 6.5 inches in diameter, setting a new state record in Illinois.

Lastly, a mid-March severe outbreak was blamed for 51 tornadoes. Fortunately, none of these twisters were deadly, as they were all rated either EF0 or EF1.