EF1 tornado touched down in Columbus, less than five miles from campus

Reegan Davis
Thu, 13 Aug 2026 21:35:43 +0000
Campus, Instagram Page, News

A fallen tree on north campus after a derecho and EF1 tornado in Columbus.| Credit: Courtesy of Ohio State

Ohio State campus saw a power outage and fallen trees after a series of severe thunderstorms and an EF1 tornado that touched down in south Columbus on Tuesday.

The National Weather Service in Wilmington conducted a survey with Franklin County Ohio Emergency Management to evaluate the damage of the series of severe thunderstorms, which were later revealed to be a derecho, according to a public statement made by NWS. The NWS confirmed the presence of a tornado today.

“The storm caused scattered power outages and some relatively minor wind and water damage,” university spokesperson Ben Johnson said in an email on Wednesdayp, in reference to damage on campus specifically. “There are also numerous trees down.”

Another tree fell in the center of campus. | Credit: Courtesy of Ohio State

The NWS survey team determined that winds reached speeds of 90 to 100mph.?

Damage was particularly present in Upper Arlington near Upper Arlington High School. The worst of the tree damage was just east of the high school along Mount Holyoke Road, Wellesley Drive,? Halstead Road, Pickwick Drive and N. Star Road, according to the statement.?

As of Thursday afternoon, over 23,000 homes in Franklin county were without electricity, according to the American Electric Power outage map. Power is estimated to be fully restored by 6 p.m. on Friday.

According to the NWS, Columbus is expected to remain under a flood watch until Friday.?

This is an ongoing story and The Lantern will update as more information is obtained.