Michigan Tornadoes Update: Four Confirmed Tornadoes, Four Dead Identified — Schools Closed, State of Emergency Declared, Cleanup Underway
Southwest Michigan is deep in recovery mode Monday, March 9, 2026, three days after one of the most devastating tornado outbreaks in state history. The National Weather Service has now confirmed four separate tornadoes touched down across Branch, Cass, and St. Joseph counties on Friday, March 6. All four victims have been identified by name, the Union City EF-3 set a statewide record, a mobile home was thrown 100 yards with an occupant inside, and Governor Gretchen Whitmer has declared a state of emergency for all three affected counties.
All Four Victims Now Identified by Name
The Branch County Sheriff's Office has released the names of the three people killed in the EF-3 tornado in the Union City area: 63-year-old William Andrew Akers, 54-year-old Keri Ann Johnson, and 65-year-old Penni Jo Guthrie. All three were recovered in the area of Prairie Rose Lane and Tuttle Park Drive in the Union Lake area of Sherwood Township. In the tornado near Edwardsburg, 12-year-old Silas Anderson was killed, the Cass County Sheriff's Office confirmed.
Edwardsburg Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Courtney Szucs released a statement calling Anderson's death "unimaginable," announcing that crisis team members would be available to support students and staff beginning Monday, March 9.
Four Confirmed Tornadoes: EF-3, EF-2, EF-1, and EF-0
The National Weather Service confirmed four tornadoes on Friday: an EF-1 near Edwardsburg, an EF-2 in Three Rivers, an EF-3 in the Union City area, and an EF-0 in Clarendon Township near Tekonsha. Four people in total were killed, making it West Michigan's deadliest tornado outbreak in decades.
The deadly EF-3 Union City tornado is the earliest EF-3 on record for Michigan and the strongest to strike the state in 49 years, with estimated peak winds exceeding 160 mph. The previous earliest EF-3 for any calendar year in Michigan was an EF-3 that struck north of Ann Arbor on March 15, 2012.
Mobile Home Thrown 100 Yards With Occupant Inside
The most harrowing new detail from Monday's NWS update is almost impossible to process. The NWS updated the Union City EF-3 peak wind speed to 160 mph and confirmed that a mobile home was picked up and thrown 100 yards with an occupant inside. That person was one of the three fatalities in the Union City tornado.
The EF-3 Union City tornado had a wind speed of at least 165 mph — just one mile per hour shy of an EF-4 classification on the Enhanced Fujita Scale. Several homes in the area were severely damaged, with some taken completely off their foundations. Around 70 homes in the Union City area were damaged.
Three Rivers: Menards Roof Collapse, Hospital Damaged, Schools Closed Monday
An EF-2 tornado ripped through Three Rivers with estimated peak winds of at least 130 mph. In Three Rivers, the back of a Menards at US-131 and Broadway Road collapsed — part of the roof and front sign were torn away. Three Rivers Health Hospital and several clinics on its campus also sustained damage, though no staff or patients were hurt.
Three Rivers Community Schools closed Monday due to damage from the storm, with the district stating that instructional buildings were safe but that cleanup and assessment were still ongoing.
Governor Whitmer Declares State of Emergency — And Tours Damage
Governor Gretchen Whitmer declared a state of emergency for Branch, Cass, and St. Joseph counties and toured the devastated areas Sunday, saying the entire state was wrapping its arms around Three Rivers, Union City, Edwardsburg, and everywhere in between.
The Michigan State Police, the Salvation Army, and nonprofit Disaster Relief at Work went door-to-door Saturday with meals and cleaning supplies in both Union City and Three Rivers. Union City High School has been established as a resource center for those needing shelter, supplies, or assistance. Residents with unmet needs for shelter, food, or other assistance are directed to call 211 or contact the American Red Cross at 1-800-RED-CROSS.
Part of a Larger National Outbreak: 25 Tornadoes Across the Central US
These Michigan tornadoes were part of a larger severe weather system that spawned over 25 tornadoes across the central United States, claiming at least eight lives in Michigan and Oklahoma combined between March 5 and 6. The cleanup and damage assessment across all four Michigan tornado corridors remains active as of Monday morning, with crews working around the clock to restore power and clear debris across Branch, Cass, and St. Joseph counties.
