Funnel cloud spotted in Union City, Michigan on Friday, March 6, 2026. | Screenshot of Facebook video taken by Lisa Nicola.

WASHNINGTON DC — One week after four tornadoes touched down in southwest Michigan, killing four people and injuring 22, U.S. Sens. Elissa Slotkin (D-Holly) and Gary Peters (D-Bloomfield Township) sent a letter to the director of the National Weather Service seeking answers into why no tornado watch was issued ahead of the storms.

In their letter to National Weather Service Director Ken Graham, Slotkin and Peters requested information on what prevented the weather service from issuing a tornado watch for the March 6 storms and what changes would be needed to improve its ability to provide timely and accurate forecasts and alerts in the future.

“We mourn for those who lost their lives to this storm, and we stand fully prepared to work with the impacted families and communities to begin the process of rebuilding and recovering,” Peters and Slotkin wrote in their March 13 letter. “At the same time, we seek to better understand how this tragic event unfolded and what changes are required to better protect public safety and avoid such tragic loss of life during future extreme weather events.”

The lawmakers presented Graham with the following list of questions, requesting a response within 30 days of receiving the letter:

• It has been reported that the National Weather Service (NWS) did not issue a tornado watch alert ahead of the March 6 tornadic storm. Why was no such alert issued?

• Tornado watch alerts are typically issued by the Storm Prediction Center after consultation with the local Weather Forecast Office, of which there are five that cover Michigan – Marquette, Gaylord, Grand Rapids, Detroit, and Northern Indiana. How many full-time employees work at each of these five offices? How do these numbers compare to staffing levels in 2024?

• What current staffing vacancies exist at these five offices? What are the primary responsibilities associated with these positions and how long have they been vacant? Do each of these Weather Forecast Offices currently employ a full-time Meteorologist in Charge, Science and Operations Officer, and Warning & Coordination Meteorologist?

•Which NWS offices were responsible for issuing tornado alerts for the impacted regions in Michigan or had staff monitoring the region on March 6?

• Was a lack of staff and/or resources a contributing factor to NWS’s inability to issue a tornado watch alert ahead of the March 6 tornadoes?

• What, if anything, would have allowed the responsible NWS offices to identify the supercell that produced these tornadoes more quickly and, in turn, issue a tornado watch alert ahead of the first touchdown? In particular, would a gap-filling radar have provided additional data that could have allowed staff to better characterize the threat of the oncoming storm?

•What steps does NWS plan to take in the wake of this fatal storm to improve the accuracy of its weather forecasting and prediction as well as the timeliness of its tornado alerts? What additional authorities and/or funding could Congress provide to facilitate such improvements?

A request for comment was left with the National Weather Service’s press office. Slotkin and Peters’ letter follows a request from Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer seeking a federal investigation to determine why a watch was not issued before the deadly storms hit the region. “At the moment Watch issuance was being considered, warnings were already in progress for the existing storm, and it was anticipated that the risk was only with this storm,” Marissa Anderson, a National Weather Service spokesperson, told Michigan Advance in a previous emailed statement. “The storm was expected to weaken soon and thus not warrant a Watch. Although a Watch was not issued, local forecasters continuously monitored the evolving weather situation and issued specific Tornado Warnings to alert communities of the immediate threat.”