Major Storm Sep 21, 2026 - Sep 22, 2026

Mon September 21-22 New York (Lake Ontario) & Ohio & Pennsylvania Storm

Sep 21-22 alley-wide storm -- 0.6" in 6hrs, Genesee River blew out, Euclid Creek fishable Tuesday.

September 21-22 New York (Lake Ontario) & Ohio & Pennsylvania Storm Card

Meteorological Analysis

A major storm system rolled through the Steelhead Alley region starting on Monday, September 21, 2026 and lasting until Tuesday, September 22, 2026. The storm was active for approximately 6 hours, dumping a maximum of 0.61" of rain across affected zones. Geographically, the weather system impacted the New York (Lake Ontario), Ohio, Pennsylvania regions, causing rapid water-level rises on multiple tributaries.

Gauges recorded significant river responses, particularly along Sandy Creek (Hamlin) (peaking at 68 CFS), Irondequoit Creek (peaking at 67 CFS), Eighteenmile Creek (Niagara) (peaking at 84 CFS), Black River (Watertown) (peaking at 1,210 CFS), Walnut Creek (peaking at 13 CFS), Twenty Mile Creek (peaking at 20 CFS), Sandy Creek (Adams) (peaking at 34 CFS), Ashtabula River (peaking at 17 CFS), Elk Creek (peaking at 12 CFS), Crooked Creek (peaking at 5 CFS), Brandy Run near Girard (peaking at 1 CFS), Salmon River (peaking at 228 CFS), Conneaut Creek (peaking at 25 CFS), Chagrin River @ Willoughby (peaking at 252 CFS), Rocky River near Berea (peaking at 90 CFS), Grand River near Painesville (peaking at 46 CFS), Vermilion River @ Vermilion (peaking at 28 CFS), Cuyahoga River @ Independence (peaking at 505 CFS), Black River (peaking at 99 CFS), Huron River (peaking at 90 CFS), Euclid Creek (peaking at 56 CFS), Johnson Creek (peaking at 77 CFS), Oak Orchard Creek (peaking at 881 CFS), Genesee River (peaking at 1,010 CFS). Angling conditions deteriorated quickly during the peak flow periods, leading to temporary washouts. Gaging stations monitored the recovery times as flows began returning to their baselines, mapping out the best windows for fishermen to get back on the water.

From a weather prediction standpoint, the NWS forecasts for this event received an aggregate score card grade of 'B'. Gaging observations were matched against NWS precipitation models to assess the forecasting margins, highlighting the variance in local rainfall amounts across the lake shores.