Union City tornado becomes the earliest EF-3 on record for Michigan
The deadly tornado that struck Union City, Michigan, on March 6, 2026, was rated EF-3 after damage surveys by the National Weather Service (NWS). It is the earliest EF-3 recorded in Michigan and the strongest to strike the state in 49 years, with estimated peak winds exceeding 247 km/h (160 mph). Meanwhile, the tornado in Edwardsburg was rated EF-1, and an EF-2 rating was given to the Three Rivers tornadoes.
The National Weather Service surveyed the tornado damage in the townships of Union City, Edwardsburg, and Three Rivers on March 8 and classified the deadly Union City tornado as an EF-3.
While the rating is preliminary, the Union City tornado is the earliest occurrence of an EF-3 tornado for Michigan on record.
The previous earliest EF-3 for any calendar year was an EF-3 that struck north of Ann Arbor on March 15, 2012. Meanwhile, the last EF-3 to strike Michigan was the Gaylord EF-3 tornado on May 20, 2022.
With estimated peak winds of over 247 km/h (160 mph), it was also the strongest tornado to have struck Michigan since the F-4 tornado that struck Kalamazoo and Eaton County on April 2, 1977.
The tornado touched down around 3.2 km (2 miles) west-southwest of Union City at around 16:35 EST on March 6 and tracked a path of approximately 6 km (3.7 miles) with a path width of 457 m (1 500 feet). It lifted off the ground at around 16:42 EST, 1.6 km (1 mile) east-northeast of Union City.
At least three people were reported dead in Union City due to the tornado while over a dozen were injured, including three who were hospitalized.
Part of the First Congregational United Church of Christ in Union City was damaged, although its nearly 150-year-old grand piano was spared. Widespread damage was reported across the tornado’s path.
Meanwhile, the Edwardsburg tornado in Cass County, which had claimed the life of a 12-year-old boy, was rated an EF-1 with estimated peak winds of over 152 km/h (95 mph).
The tornado struck the boy’s home after touching down near the northwest of the intersection of Runkle Street and Conrad Road at around 15:11 EST, destroying an attached garage and damaging the front of his house.
It then tracked a path of 21.6 km (13.4 miles), ending at around 15:35 EST, 1.6 km (1 mile) north of Shavenhead Lake. It also caused some minor roof damage as it moved across Yankee Street, east of Dailey Road.
The tornado then intensified, with the most damage occurring along Harris Street, between Hess Road and M-62, where multiple trees were snapped or uprooted. Some damage to pole barns and roof damage to multiple buildings was also reported.
The tornado crossed M-62 and continued northeast, crossing portions of Oil City Rd and Monette St to Curtis, Day and Chain Lakes before lifting just east of the intersection of South and Walnut Rd.
Meanwhile, the Three Rivers tornado has been rated an EF-2 with estimated peak winds of over 210 km/h (130 mph). The survey of the tornado is still ongoing, and details of the tornado’s path length, width, and timings will be available soon.
These tornadoes were parts of larger severe weather that spawned over 25 tornadoes across the central United States claiming at least eight lives in Michigan and Oklamhoma between March 5 and 6.
Read more:
1 Public Information Statement – NWS – March 8, 2026
2 March 6th 2026 Severe Weather and Tornadoes in Southern Lower Michigan – NWS – March 8, 2026
Feature image credit: First Congregational United Church of Christ in Union City
I am an Assistant Editor and Severe Weather & Science Journalist at The Watchers, specializing in real-time severe weather coverage, geophysical event reporting, and research-driven scientific analysis. You can reach me at rishav(at)watchers(.)news.
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