WeatherNation Meteorologists

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MARCH 5-7, 2026 - A powerful early-March storm system unleashed a widespread severe weather outbreak across parts of the Plains and Midwest, producing tornadoes, damaging winds, and large hail that left several communities dealing with significant destruction. The storms developed as warm, moisture-rich air surged north from the Gulf and collided with a strong cold front moving across the central United States. The combination of instability and strong wind shear created an environment favorable for intense thunderstorms capable of producing tornadoes.&nbsp; <img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/Screenshot20260307061955png-1772889600650.png"><video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/2026-03-07 04-44-42-1772883932550.mkv" controls="true" width="100%"></video>Severe storms erupted across several states, including Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, and Illinois, before tracking farther north into the Midwest and Great Lakes. Millions of people were placed under severe weather alerts as powerful thunderstorms developed along the advancing storm system. Some storms quickly intensified into supercells, capable of producing tornadoes and very large hail.&nbsp;<div class="twitter-tweet" style="display: flex; justify-content: center" data-twitt-post-id="2030128965650694479" src="https://x.com/WeatherNation/status/2030128965650694479"></div>According to the National Weather Service in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the Beggs tornado has a preliminary rating of EF-3 with estimated peak winds of 135 to 140 mph.One of the hardest hit areas was southern Michigan, where tornadoes damaged homes and buildings and caused multiple fatalities. Emergency crews responded to widespread damage after storms tore through communities overnight, leaving debris scattered across neighborhoods and knocking out power to thousands. In addition to the tornado threat, storms produced destructive straight-line winds and hail large enough to cause damage to vehicles, roofs and windows.&nbsp;Storm surveyors found EF2 damage in Three Rivers and EF3 damage in Union City, MI.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/web1-1773050410282.png">&nbsp;<div class="twitter-tweet" style="display: flex; justify-content: center" data-twitt-post-id="2030093575778635918" src="https://x.com/WeatherNation/status/2030093575778635918"></div>Some of the storms produced hail larger than three inches in diameter along with wind gusts exceeding 70 miles per hour. Heavy rainfall also accompanied the storms, raising concerns for localized flooding in some areas.&nbsp;<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/web1-1773050441324.png">The outbreak is notable because it occurred relatively early in the severe weather season and impacted a broad portion of the country from the Southern Plains to the Great Lakes. As the storm system continues to push east, an additional round of strong to severe thunderstorms could develop in parts of the eastern United States before conditions gradually improve.&nbsp;

Adrian Hernandez

Deadly Tornadoes Strike Plains and Great Lakes

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Taban Sharifi grew up in Southern California between Los Angeles and San Diego. She is a Certified Broadcast Meteorologist (CBM) with the American Meteorological Society (AMS). She has a B.S. in Atmospheric, Oceanic, and Environmental Sciences with a minor in Environmental Systems and Society from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Go Bruins! While in school, Taban was a meteorology intern with NBC LA. There she helped forecast daily weather for the greater Los Angeles region and created a playbook to deploy weather sensors for NBC owned-and-operated stations across the country. Her first on-air job took her to San Angelo, Texas, where she was a morning meteorologist and co-anchor. Working in West Texas gave her knowledge and experience covering severe storms. From there, she moved to Palm Springs, California. People think forecasting in California is sunshine all the time, but with temperatures in the 120’s, wildfires, damaging winds, floodings, and earthquakes, the forecasting kept her very busy! She also worked there as a general assignment reporter and told community stories. Taban is excited for the challenge and opportunity to forecast nationally with WeatherNation. She also looks forward to exploring all that Colorado has to offer!

Taban Sharifi

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On the heels of an active opening week to Meteorological Spring, another threat of severe weather will be in the cards for the first half of the week. Remember the upper low that caused severe weather this past weekend? The other half of the low will move through Tuesday and Wednesday.<video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/New Baron Video 3-1772915032131.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video>Severe weather outlooks are in place from Tuesday to Wednesday. With plenty of unstable air to tap into, the threat for severe weather persists. The massive outlook stretches from central Texas to the Great Lakes. An ENHANCED (level 3 out of 5) risk for severe weather is in place for Tuesday in portions of the Midwest and portions of Texas, making the risk for significant severe weather higher.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/web1-1773136811418.png">For Tuesday, we'll also have several significant severe risks for the current outlook. These risks will include all threats for severe weather (tornadoes, hail, and damaging winds). When these risks are issued, the Storm Prediction Center (SPC), highlights specific areas for strong severe weather to potentially occur.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/web2-1773137006267.png">A SLIGHT (level 2 out of 5) risk remains in place following the cold front through Wednesday. This extends from Texas to Pennsylvania.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/web3-1773137044599.png">We'll have another outlook for significant severe weather for Wednesday as well. This time, however, calling for the potential for strong tornadoes in the highlighted area.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/web4-1773137126406.png"><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/web5-1773137126407.png">The storms will begin to fire up Tuesday night and continue through Wednesday. Additionally, more heavy rain could lead to more flooding since the grounds are already saturated from last week's storms.<video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/2026-03-10 06-05-43-1773137169765.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video>The current thinking is that the heaviest of the rain will be down in the South, as an additional 2-4" is likely!<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/web6-1773137221329.png">Tune in to WeatherNation live for the very latest.

Another Round of Severe Weather Likely This Week

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Rob grew up in South Florida, where daily afternoon storms and hurricanes piqued his interest in meteorology early on. That interest was fostered by his teachers and his father, who one time brought him onto the roof of their home to watch a funnel cloud move through the Everglades several miles away. Years of filmmaking and tv production in high school gradually pushed him toward broadcast meteorology at Florida State University, where he joined and eventually led the student run daily weather show. After graduating with a Bachelors of Science in Meteorology, he began his career at KESQ in Palm Springs, California before heading to KFSN in Fresno and WLOS in Asheville, North Carolina. He has covered a diverse array of extreme weather events, including haboobs and flash flooding in the desert, extreme snow in the Sierra, hurricanes, and Appalachian ice storms. He also enjoys telling stories and reporting about weather issues.

Connect with Rob on <a href="https://twitter.com/WxRobBradley">Twitter</a>

Rob Bradley

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Top Image Credit: National Parks Service<div data-youtube-video=""><iframe width="640" height="480" allowfullscreen="false" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8V6xqwukzO0" start="0"></iframe></div>Spring is fast approaching, and so are the blooms of flowers all across North America. This includes the famous cherry tree bloom around the National Mall in Washington, D.C.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/Screenshot 2026-03-06 080027-1772810872599.png">On Thursday, March 5th, the National Park Service announced its projected peak cherry blossom date for 2026. The peak is expected around late March into early April (between the 31st and 2nd). Still, the forecast for the peak is generally difficult to make beyond ten days, as blossoms will be impacted by weather conditions. Check back in for updates!<h2>What is "peak bloom"?</h2>The peak bloom date is defined as the day when 70% of the Yoshino Cherry blossoms are open, one of <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.nps.gov/subjects/cherryblossom/types-of-trees.htm">many types of cherry trees</a> in the area. Peak bloom usually lasts for several days, with the blooms taking <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.nps.gov/subjects/cherryblossom/bloom-watch.htm">about two to three weeks to reach peak</a> after the appearance of green buds. As buds begin to appear, the forecast peak date will be updated by National Park Service horticulturists.<h2>Past Blooms</h2><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/Screenshot 2026-03-06 080035-1772811048593.png"> Due to variable weather conditions, peak bloom has occurred as early as March 15th (1990) and as late as April 18th (1958).Visiting the blossoming cherry trees has become a favorite springtime tradition for Americans and tourists alike, dating back to 1912 when Japan gifted the U.S. about 3,000 cherry trees. The cherry trees in Japan have been putting on a show for thousands of years, with the dates of blooms being <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/date-of-the-peak-cherry-tree-blossom-in-kyoto">recorded all the way back to the 9th century</a>. The dates for this year's peak blooms in Japan are expected from <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.japan-guide.com/sakura/">late March through late April</a> from north to south across the nation.

Tracey Anthony

Peak Cherry Blossom Forecast Released For 2026

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Kevin Schneider

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A ridge of high pressure is bringing unseasonably warm temperatures across much of the United States, sending temperatures above average. Another round of records was set again! Chicago had a record high of 73°, beating the old record of 69°. Over 100 new record highs will be possible this week.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/FJSLSLLSS-1773108997901.png"><img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/FJFJFJFJD-1773108997898.png">The unusual warmth is being driven by a large dome of high pressure in the upper atmosphere, which is allowing warm air from the southern U.S. and Gulf region to spread across the country. This pattern not only boosts daytime temperatures but also keeps overnight lows unusually mild, limiting the amount of cooling that normally occurs this time of year. In several cities, early morning temperatures have been closer to typical afternoon highs for early March.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/AAA_WEB2-1773133618730.png">Later in the week, high pressure sets up back on the West Coast, bringing temperatures soaring.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/Screenshot 2026-03-09 113118-1773077644664.png">Highs will warm into the 80's and 90s, which will start to threaten records starting Thursday in places like Los Angeles<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/AAA_WEB4-1773133720045.png">

Record-Breaking Heat Sweeps Across the Eastern United States

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Alana Cameron was born and raised in Canada in the city of Mississauga, just outside of Toronto. Alana is the oldest of 4 siblings, all close in age, and grew up playing outside with them in all types of weather. After graduating high school, Alana moved to study at the University of British Columbia in Kelowna for a year before transferring to Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia where she completed a Bachelor of Science in Physics and Atmospheric Science. Upon completion, Alana moved back to Toronto where she completed a post-grad degree in Meteorology at York University. After her post-grad, she went on to complete another post-grad in Broadcast Journalism - TV News at Fanshawe College in London, Ontario. During her final year of studies she had the privilege of interning with the best in the business in Canada at The Weather Network. Once she finished her internship, she got the call from small-town Denison, Texas where she accepted a job as an on-air meteorologist at KTEN-TV, right in tornado alley, covering severe weather from Sherman/Denison (North Texas) to Ada (Southern Oklahoma). After the most active tornado season Oklahoma had seen in May 2019 (105 tornadoes!) Alana is excited to join WeatherNation to cover weather all across the nation. If you're interested in following her on social media she can be found @alanacameronwx!

Alana Cameron

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The SPC has maintained a SLIGHT (level 2 out of 5) risk for severe weather across portions of the South through tonight. This includes Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia. This risk also comes along with the threat of some supercells capable of producing significant hail greater than two inches in diameter.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/Screenshot 2026-03-09 143624-1773088658405.png"> A severe thunderstorm watch is in place for these areas, this information can be found during our live broadcast through tonight. The timing of these storms will continue to threaten the lower Mississippi Valley through tonight. Some storms will likely cluster together as they move into Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia through tonight producing more of a damaging wind threat.<video src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/0309-1773090902606.mp4" controls="true" width="100%"></video>A few localized downpours from these storms may manage to ring out a few inches of rainfall.<img src="https://media.weathernationtv.com/app/uploads/2026/03/Screenshot 2026-03-09 143633-1773088751391.png">Be sure to join us on WeatherNation as we track these storms on live VIPIR radar!

Peak Cherry Blossom Forecast Released For 2026

Record-Breaking Heat Sweeps Across the Eastern United States

Severe Threat Through Tonight in South

Deadly Tornadoes Strike Plains and Great Lakes

Another Round of Severe Weather Likely This Week

Peak Cherry Blossom Forecast Released For 2026

Record-Breaking Heat Sweeps Across the Eastern United States

Severe Threat Through Tonight in South

Deadly Tornadoes Strike Plains and Great Lakes

Another Round of Severe Weather Likely This Week

Peak Cherry Blossom Forecast Released For 2026

Record-Breaking Heat Sweeps Across the Eastern United States

Severe Threat Through Tonight in South