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Parke County tornado confirmed

Wednesday, April 8, 2026 at 10:26 PM

By Staff report

The National Weather Service has completed its damage survey from the April 2 storm event, confirming that a tornado did occur near Raccoon Lake.

A bookend vortex moving near Cecil Harden Lake produced a brief tornado that crossed East Mallard Drive. Drone imagery showed clear signs of convergence within tree damage in a grove of trees between Meadows Lane and Mallard Drive with 30-40 trees either uprooted or snapped along the short path.

Structure damage was limited to minor siding damage outside of damage caused by falling trees. Additional damage was found several miles both upstream and downstream of the tornado but was determined to be localized areas of enhanced straight-line winds. 

The EF0 was reported to have peak winds at 85 mph along a path just short of two-tenths  of a mile and 50 yards across.