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SEPTEMBER 18, 2026 DAVIS COUNTY, UTAH

A tornado
in the Wasatch.

A rotating storm crossed Davis County. Then a tornado reached the Wasatch foothills.

Farmington & Fruit Heights · The event, the evidence, and the views from our community.

Preliminary account · sources checked September 18, 2026 MDT

Estimated touchdown
1:52 p.m. MDT
NWS reported location
East of Fruit Heights
Reported elevation
About 7,500 feet
Official EF rating
Not yet established

FEATURED METEOROLOGIST · DAN POPE

Dan Pope follows the storm.

Radar, storm structure and reports from the mountains. Dan’s posts bring together his analysis and the observers documenting the day.

X / TWITTER SEPT 18, 2026

Dan Pope: the NWS report and terrain

Dan Pope

Meteorologist commentary and attributed photographs. His discussion of the track beyond the ridge remains preliminary.

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X / TWITTER SEPT 18, 2026

Dan Pope: the supercell over the valley

Dan Pope, quoting Jaxon (@wx_jax_)

Photographs of storm structure before its passage into the mountains.

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X / TWITTER SEPT 18, 2026

Dan Pope: a cross section of the storm

Dan Pope, quoting Mike Madrigal

Meteorologist interpretation of the storm’s vertical structure.

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What happened

On Friday afternoon, September 18, a severe thunderstorm moved across Davis County toward the Wasatch Mountains. The National Weather Service confirmed a tornado east of Fruit Heights, near Farmington, after examining video of a rotating column reaching the surface and lifting debris. The preliminary report estimates touchdown at 1:52 p.m. MDT, about two miles east of Fruit Heights, on a ridge extending west from Francis Peak at roughly 7,500 feet elevation. The time and location are estimates derived from radar, the video account and terrain matching. Read the NWS confirmation.

The distinction matters: the warning described the storm over Farmington; the confirmed touchdown location is east of Fruit Heights. The 7,500-foot figure describes the reported touchdown area, not the elevation of Francis Peak itself. The NWS bulletin was issued at 3:19 p.m.; that was not the touchdown time.

The afternoon, in Mountain Daylight Time

  • 1:44 p.m. — Tornado warning. NWS Salt Lake City warned northeastern Davis, south-central Weber and west-central Morgan counties. A storm over Farmington was moving northeast at 30 mph; spotters had reported a funnel cloud, and radar indicated rotation. The warning also identified a ping-pong-ball-size hail threat. NWS warning, issued September 18.
  • 1:45 p.m. — Hail near Kaysville. A preliminary NWS report records estimated 1.50-inch hail two miles west of Kaysville, based on a photograph submitted to the office. NWS local storm report.
  • 1:52 p.m. — Estimated tornado time. This is the time in the preliminary Fruit Heights report, not a measured start-to-finish duration. NWS confirmation.
  • 2:15 p.m. — Warning expiration. The tornado warning’s stated expiration time. That does not establish when the tornado dissipated or mean all severe weather had ended.
  • 2:38 p.m. — Hail west of Farmington. A trained-spotter report records measured 1.50-inch hail one mile west of town. NWS local storm report.

Why this storm stood out

University of Utah atmospheric scientist Jim Steenburgh described a pronounced mesocyclone and a hook echo as the storm approached the northern Wasatch near Farmington. His radar discussion explains how neighboring inbound and outbound velocities reveal rotation. He also distinguishes a rotating thunderstorm from a confirmed tornado: the radar signature alone does not prove contact with the ground. His post was written while the event was unfolding; the later NWS confirmation resolves that uncertainty for this event. Northern Utah Mesocyclone — Wasatch Weather Weenies.

Dan Pope’s featured reports examine the storm’s structure, terrain and radar presentation. Matthew Johnson shares the Fruit Heights footage and warning-time radar, while Chase Thomason relays a viewer’s account of trees down near Middle Smith Lake. These are useful perspectives alongside the official report, with their original credits and context retained.

What remains preliminary

No official EF rating, surveyed path length, width or complete duration is established in the NWS sources reviewed for this account. Early social-media estimates of wind speed or intensity are not a damage-survey rating. Reports of tree damage beyond the ridge are included as attributed reports; they do not by themselves prove a continuous tornado track across the mountains. A final damage or injury total is not established here.

This is an event archive. Embedded warning posts describe September 18 conditions. For current conditions and alerts, use our weather page and NWS Salt Lake City.

Source archive: the original NWS bulletins

These bulletins record September 18, 2026. The warning below has expired. Times printed in the report heading are issue times; the event times appear in the report body.

Tornado

Official NWS product

000
NWUS55 KSLC 182119
LSRSLC

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Salt Lake City UT
319 PM MDT Fri Sep 18 2026

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0152 PM     Tornado          2 E Fruit Heights       41.03N 111.87W
09/18/2026                   Davis              UT   Public           

            Tornado seen in video shared on social 
            media, showing rotation reaching the ground 
            and debris being lofted into the air. The 
            point that it touched down was near a summit 
            along the ridgeline extending west from 
            Francis Peak around 7,500 feet elevation. 
            Time is estimated based on radar and report 
            from the person who posted the video. 
            Location is based on cross-referencing the 
            terrain features in the video with maps. 

&&

$$

DVC

Kaysville Hail

Official NWS product

000
NWUS55 KSLC 182050
LSRSLC

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Salt Lake City UT
250 PM MDT Fri Sep 18 2026

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0145 PM     Hail             2 W Kaysville           41.03N 111.95W
09/18/2026  E1.50 Inch       Davis              UT   Public           

            From a picture shared with our office via 
            social media, reported as Kaysville just 
            west of I-15. 

&&

$$

DVC

Farmington Hail

Official NWS product

000
NWUS55 KSLC 182144
LSRSLC

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Salt Lake City UT
344 PM MDT Fri Sep 18 2026

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0238 PM     Hail             1 W Farmington          40.98N 111.92W
09/18/2026  M1.50 Inch       Davis              UT   Trained Spotter  

            Report shared via Spotter Network. 

&&

$$

DVC

Tornado warning — expired September 18 at 2:15 p.m. MDT

910
WFUS55 KSLC 181944
TORSLC
UTC011-029-057-182015-
/O.NEW.KSLC.TO.W.0004.260918T1944Z-260918T2015Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
Tornado Warning
National Weather Service Salt Lake City UT
144 PM MDT Fri Sep 18 2026

The National Weather Service in Salt Lake City has issued a

* Tornado Warning for...
  South central Weber County in northern Utah...
  Northeastern Davis County in northern Utah...
  West central Morgan County in northern Utah...

* Until 215 PM MDT.

* At 144 PM MDT, a severe thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado
  was located over Farmington, moving northeast at 30 mph.

  HAZARD...Tornado and ping pong ball size hail.

  SOURCE...Weather spotters reported funnel cloud.

  IMPACT...Flying debris will be dangerous to those caught without
           shelter. Mobile homes will be damaged or destroyed.
           Damage to roofs, windows, and vehicles will occur.  Tree
           damage is likely.

* This dangerous storm will be near...
  Layton, Morgan, and South Weber around 150 PM MDT.

Other locations impacted by this tornadic thunderstorm include
Mountain Green, Portersville, East Layton, Stoddard, Peterson, Fruit
Heights, Richville, and Snowbasin.

This includes the following highways...
 Interstate 15 between mile markers 322 and 332.
 Interstate 84 between mile markers 88 and 105.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

TAKE COVER NOW! Move to a basement or an interior room on the lowest
floor of a sturdy building. Avoid windows. If you are outdoors, in a
mobile home, or in a vehicle, move to the closest substantial shelter
and protect yourself from flying debris.

&&

LAT...LON 4094 11197 4105 11203 4124 11177 4098 11159
TIME...MOT...LOC 1944Z 238DEG 27KT 4101 11190

TORNADO...RADAR INDICATED
MAX HAIL SIZE...1.50 IN

$$

BW
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MORE VOICES READING THE STORM

Meteorologists & weather observers.

Matthew Johnson, Chase Thomason, Reed Timmer and other weather observers add their perspectives alongside the official record.

INSTAGRAM SEPT 18, 2026

The storm’s hook echo

Reed Timmer

Meteorologist commentary posted while the storm was in progress; early interpretations are retained in the original.

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INSTAGRAM SEPT 18, 2026

Radar at 1:42 p.m.

Matthew Johnson / KSL

Funnel-cloud and radar observations from before the tornado warning.

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INSTAGRAM SEPT 18, 2026

Warning-time radar update

Matthew Johnson / KSL

An archived warning update, not a current alert.

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ACROSS DAVIS COUNTY & THE WASATCH

Many views of one remarkable afternoon.

Storm structure, hail, reported tree damage and eyewitness accounts. Individual captions identify what each post shows.

INSTAGRAM SEPT 18, 2026

The storm in photographs

David Broberg, Jaxon, Kimberly Miller and Bennett Carlson, via Heidi Hatch

Photos accompanying the confirmed tornado report.

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INSTAGRAM SEPT 18, 2026

Trees down near Middle Smith Lake

Nicholas Lemoine, via KUTV 2News

Reported storm aftermath in Morgan County. This does not establish a surveyed tornado path or EF rating.

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INSTAGRAM SEPT 18, 2026

Davis County hail and siding damage

Lucas Kinney and @_mi.c.h.e.l.l.e_, via Matthew Johnson / KSL

Viewer estimates appear in the post; the official reports cited above record 1.50-inch hail.

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EARLIER STORMS & OTHER UTAH LOCATIONS

The wider storm period.

Thursday’s hail, Friday morning’s flooding and the separate northeastern Utah footage provide regional context. These are not presented as views of the Fruit Heights tornado.

INSTAGRAM SEPT 18, 2026

A statewide storm roundup

Salt Lake City Scoop

Regional coverage including the Fruit Heights confirmation.

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INSTAGRAM SEPT 18, 2026

Friday’s hail: viewer compilation

KSL and credited viewer contributors

Includes multiple locations; see the original caption for the full contributor list.

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INSTAGRAM SEPT 18, 2026

Northern Utah severe-weather footage

KSL and credited viewer contributors

Multiple storm views from around the state.

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KEEP EXPLORING

This is part of a longer Utah story.

September 18 in the almanac →Utah’s historical tornado report →Historical tornado photographs →

Have a correction or first-hand context? Contact UCCW.

FROM THE MEDIA COLLECTION