40th anniversary of a massive tornado outbreak in Ohio, Pennsylvania
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — On the evening of May 31, 1985, a series of large and deadly tornadoes swept across northeastern and central Ohio, leaving wide paths of destruction.
Victoria Piasecka, a Hilliard resident, was a high school student in Howland Township, Ohio, a little south of Warren, in May 1985. School had let out for the summer on that unseasonably warm, sunny afternoon. She and her friends were playing video games at her aunt's home when they heard an unfamiliar sound. Heading outside, a large tornado resembling a column of fire descended from a relatively bright sky without warning.
'It wasn't dark at the time,' said Piasecka. 'It was huge, and roofs going up, and just seeing stuff going up in the air, and we all ran inside after that.' She added that the scene moments afterwards was 'just devastating.'
The tornado first touched down in Newton Falls, about 15 miles west of Niles, where the fire chief saved lives by climbing to the roof of the Municipal Building, where he spotted the funnel and alerted officials by walkie talkie to sound the town's tornado siren.
The F3/F4 tornado intensified before plowing through the northern part of Niles, destroying a popular roller rink that would have been occupied with youngsters only a short time later in the evening.
Columbus and central Ohio Weather Radar
Hundreds of homes were destroyed by winds approaching 300 mph, and eight people died. The monster tornado continued east, weakening slightly as it passed north of Youngstown, killing two persons in Hubbard Township. The violent tornado blasted across Mercer County, Pennsylvania, killing seven more in Wheatland. In all, 18 lives were lost and 310 people were injured.
Around the same time, a tornado touched down northwest of Johnstown and passed north of the Croton egg farm, traveling 29 miles before ending in the hills of southwestern Coshocton County. One person died just across the county line and 25 were injured. A number of homes and barns were heavily damaged, and trees were toppled along the path of the storm across northern Licking County.
The tornado outbreak that began in the mid-afternoon in southeastern Ontario, Canada, where 12 people died, spread rapidly southeast across northeastern and central Ohio (11 direct deaths) and western and central Pennsylvania (65 deaths). Storm damages at the time were estimated in excess of $600 million.
A total of 44 tornadoes were confirmed, including 12 in Ohio and 21 in Pennsylvania (including four that started in Ohio). Three tornadoes touched down in New York, one of which first landed in northwestern Pennsylvania. A recent update counted 14 tornadoes in Ontario.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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