Omaha Severe Weather: Homes Ripped Apart by Suspected Tornado Near Ashland Amid Mass Outages

Sunday night's severe weather in the Omaha metro triggered tornado sirens and left homes damaged north of Ashland, as storms swept through the area and knocked out power to thousands.

The storms moved across eastern Nebraska and western Iowa late Sunday after the National Weather Service issued severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings for parts of the Omaha metro. According to a FOX Weather report, tornado warnings were issued on the evening of 17 May 2026 between roughly 8.00pm and 9.00pm, covering parts of Saunders, Sarpy, Douglas and Cass counties in Nebraska, along with Pottawattamie County in Iowa. The same report said forecasters confirmed a tornado near the Platte River northeast of Ashland moving towards the south‑western Omaha suburbs, with radar and spotter observations also indicating tornadic activity near Gretna and Ashland.

The late‑night severe weather tore up multiple homes in some areas north of Ashland. Local reports said the worst storm damage was concentrated in neighbourhoods north of Ashland near the Platte River corridor, although no specific subdivision had been formally identified in the initial emergency updates. Early assessments from local crews indicated that several homes had been damaged or heavily affected, though officials had not yet released an exact property count.

At least three homes suffered roof damage in the Sandy Point Lake area near Ashland. One of the homes had most of the roof torn completely off and windows blown out, and the heavy rain that followed caused extensive water damage inside. Thankfully, no one was home at the time, so no injuries were reported. One viewer told First Alert 6 that he saw a funnel cloud, though no confirmed details had been released identifying where the viewer was when the funnel cloud was reportedly seen or the exact time it was reported. The same report noted that the National Weather Service had deployed an assessment team to the area as part of its storm and possible tornado investigation.

Tornadic activity will need to be confirmed by the National Weather Service, which already had an assessment team examining the area late Sunday.

Omaha Severe Weather Brings Widespread Power Cuts

The storms also left thousands without power across the Omaha metro. As many as 8,000 outages were reported to OPPD in the aftermath of Sunday night's storm, with an additional 1,000 or so outages in Council Bluffs, according to MidAmerican Energy outage maps. Those numbers were down to about 2,000 and 120, respectively, at about 12.30am Monday. According to First Alert 6, power outages across the Omaha metro had fallen significantly by early Monday, dropping to around 2,000 OPPD customers and about 120 MidAmerican customers after peaking overnight. OPPD and MidAmerican said repair crews were working continuously, with restoration efforts prioritising major transmission lines before local neighbourhood repairs. Reports also indicated that rural areas near Ashland and Saunders County could face the longest outages due to storm damage and difficult repair conditions.

Crews were still working through the night to clear debris from city streets and neighbourhood roads. First Alert 6 observed large limbs that had fallen into some side streets in the storm's high winds. Our crews also found a large tree that smashed a white SUV in the Midtown area.

Residents described a sudden escalation in wind and rain as the line of storms passed over the city. One Ashland‑area resident told First Alert 6 that he saw a 'funnel cloud' as the storm intensified over the neighbourhood north of the city, where several homes later suffered major roof damage. Emergency responders urged people to avoid downed lines and treat all debris‑covered roads as potentially unsafe until utility crews could complete their checks.

Omaha Severe Weather Also Triggers Localised Flooding

There were also some areas that saw flooding as a result of the heavy rains. First Alert 6 observed flooding in certain spots along the streetcar construction route, but no extensive flooding occurred on Saddle Creek Road as has happened in previous downpours.

Storm drains in some residential streets briefly backed up as water collected in low spots, although levels receded once the heaviest rain moved out. No National Weather Service rainfall totals had been released at the time of reporting for the Ashland storm. However, local reports described heavy downpours that briefly overwhelmed storm drains and caused short‑lived street flooding in parts of Omaha before water levels quickly receded as the rain eased. Broader forecasts had warned that the system could bring torrential rainfall alongside damaging winds and possible tornado activity.

Local authorities are expected to keep surveying damage and monitoring the clean‑up into Monday. With the National Weather Service still analysing debris patterns and no full damage report yet released, the precise strength and track of any suspected tornado in the Ashland area remain unclear. Until officials spell out what they have found, those details should be handled as provisional rather than settled fact.