Tornado watch issued for Columbus, central Ohio

Posted: Jun 18, 2021 / 04:02 AM EDT

Updated: Jun 18, 2021 / 04:40 PM EDT

TORNADO WATCH UNTIL 11 P.M.

A cluster of severe thunderstorms moving through east-central Indiana into west-central Ohio has triggered several tornado warnings. A large wedge tornado was sighted in Jay County, Indiana, by a spotter shortly before 4 p.m. near the Ohio line.

As storms move east-southeast additional warnings will extend into western portions of central Ohio early this evening. Thunderstorms will be capable or producing damaging winds, hail, and isolated tornadoes along a remnant weather boundary from earlier storms.

Later this evening and overnight, individual cells will tend to form a line and sink southeast, bringing the risk of wind damage and downpours (locally 1-2″) that will cause pockets of flooding.

A Flash Flood Watch is in effect until noon Saturday along and south of I-70.

The frontal boundary will stall over southern Ohio early Saturday, with another wave of rain and thunder in the morning and midday, before lifting north as a warm front, leaving us with a muggy Saturday. The latter half of the day will be hazy and humid, with isolated storms in the northern half of the state toward evening.

Sunday should be drier overall, but a pop-up late afternoon storm possible due to more sunshine and high humidity, as highs rebound into the upper 80s.

The weather will remain active Monday with another strong cold front triggering afternoon and evening gusty storms, followed by much cooler air like this past week, with highs again in the 70s and morning lows in the 50s .

Tropical Storm Claudette?

A tropical low in the western Gulf will make landfall as a depression or Tropical Storm Claudette over western Louisiana tonight, bringing another round of soaking rain near the central Gulf Coast extending northward to the Tennessee Valley. The storm will veer northeast toward Atlanta, with little tropical moisture reaching this far north, based on the current track.