4 dead in Michigan as powerful storms that produced at least 1 tornado
rip through the state
[March 07, 2026]
By HALLIE GOLDEN, KATHY McCORMACK and JEFF MARTIN
Four people were killed Friday in southern Michigan as powerful storms
that produced at least one tornado reduced homes to rubble, sent parts
of roofs flying into the air and left a trail of debris hanging from
power lines.
In the Union Lake area, near Union City, three people were killed and 12
injured after an apparent tornado hit, according to the Branch County
Sheriff’s Office. About 50 miles (80.5 kilometers) southwest, Cass
County officials reported one death and several injuries, after a
tornado touched down.
Lisa Piper stood on her back deck and videoed a terrifying scene that
played out on the other side of frozen Union Lake as a funnel cloud
formed and then dropped toward the ground. Trees were torn from their
roots and debris flew into the air.
“It’s lifting houses!” she said. As the devastation continued, she
exclaimed: “Oh my heart is pounding. Oh, I hope they’re OK.”
Powerful storms formed Friday from Michigan all the way to Oklahoma,
with reports of heavy rain and threats of severe thunderstorms. Tornado
watches stretched from Iowa to Oklahoma, along with Michigan.
At least one tornado has been confirmed in southern Michigan, near Union
City, on Friday, according to the National Weather Service, and there
were reports of possible others.
Part of the First Congregational United Church of Christ in Union City
was damaged, although its nearly 150-year-old grand piano was spared, it
said in a post on Facebook.
The combination of a weather system that pulled moisture out of the Gulf
of Mexico and a warm front that moved north created the right conditions
for a tornado in a state where they're relatively rare, according to
David Roth, a meteorologist at the weather service's Weather Prediction
Center in College Park, Maryland. The system encountered much cooler air
in the Great Lakes area.
Michigan gets an average of 15 tornadoes a year, which is much less than
the 155 for Texas and 96 for Kansas, he said.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer activated the state's Emergency Operations Center
Friday “to coordinate an all-hands-on-deck response to severe weather,”
she said in a statement.
In St. Joseph County, Michigan, next to the Indiana border, the
sheriff’s office told residents to “seek shelter immediately” following
reports of an unconfirmed tornado, a severe thunderstorm watch and
possible winds more than 60 mph (96 kph). The sheriff's office said they
should expect power outages, closed roads and disruptions to cell
service and the internet.
Severe weather stretches far beyond Michigan
A tornado cut around a 4-mile (6.4-kilometer) path of damage in Okmulgee
County, some 30 miles (48 kilometers) south of Tulsa, although more
details wouldn’t be clear until daybreak, said Jeff Moore, the county’s
emergency manager.
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Damage is seen at Menard's store after a severe storm in Three
Rivers, Mich., Friday, March 6, 2026. (Devin Anderson-Torrez/MLive
via AP)
Some people were injured, although Moore couldn't provide an exact
number or their conditions, and large trees were toppled. Power was
out for more than 1,600 people, according to poweroutage.us.
“We’re just getting everywhere as fast as we can, clearing roads as
fast we can,” Moore said.
In an eerie scene captured on video Thursday, a first responder
drove straight at a storm near the western Oklahoma town of
Fairview, where flashes of lightning illuminated a giant funnel that
appeared to reach the ground. That storm, among the first outbreaks
of severe weather on the verge of the spring storm season, was
filmed by a camera mounted on the deputy's car.
Nearby, a 47-year-old woman and her 13-year-old daughter from
Fairview were found dead in a vehicle near an intersection of a
highway and a county road at about 10 p.m. Thursday, authorities
said.
“I am praying for the family as they grieve this tragic loss, as
well as all those impacted by the storms,” Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt
said in a statement Friday.
Multiple large municipalities could see severe storms
More than 5 million Americans were at an enhanced risk of severe
weather in an area that includes Kansas City, Missouri, and Topeka,
Kansas, the national Storm Prediction Center said Friday.
Severe, scattered thunderstorms are expected to continue Friday
evening from areas of the Plains states to the Ozarks and Midwest,
the National Weather Service said.
The spring storms come near the start of what many call tornado
season, which generally begins at various times in different parts
of the U.S. Experts recommend a few simple safety steps to take
before tornadoes hit, including having a weather radio and a plan
for where to take shelter.
The weather began to ease Friday in some areas of the Northeast, but
Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and
Connecticut remained under weather advisories.
In parts of the southern U.S., the weather pattern is also expected
to usher in extremely warm temperatures for this time of year by the
weekend.
“Temperatures will be 20-30 degrees above average, with 80s reaching
as far north as parts of the Ohio Valley and Mid-Atlantic,” federal
forecasters wrote in their long-range forecast discussion. “Daily
records could become widespread.”
—-
McCormack reported from Concord, New Hampshire, and Martin reported
from Atlanta. Associated Press Writer Patrick Whittle in Portland,
Maine, Hannah Schoenbaum in Salt Lake City and Audrey McAvoy in
Honolulu contributed.
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