Rain turns to ice, cuts power in Great Lakes region while Tennessee braces for wild weather
Rain turns to ice, cuts power in Great Lakes region while Tennessee braces for wild weather
A tree lies fallen atop the rear section of a car near the intersection of Beech Street and Division Street on Sunday, March 30, 2025, after severe thunderstorms and high winds in East Lansing, Mich. (Arthur H. Trickett-Wile/MLive.com/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)
A tree lies fallen between two vehicles at a residence near the intersection of Beech Street and Division Street on Sunday, March 30, 2025, after severe thunderstorms and high winds in East Lansing, Mich. (Arthur H. Trickett-Wile/MLive.com/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)
In this photo provide by Jesika Fox, freezing rain and ice brought down power lines and trees in Alpena, Mich., Sunday, March 30, 2025. (Jesika Fox via AP)
A tree lies fallen between two vehicles at a residence near the intersection of Beech Street and Division Street on Sunday, March 30, 2025, after severe thunderstorms and high winds in East Lansing, Mich. (Arthur H. Trickett-Wile/MLive.com/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)
In this photo provided by Interlochen Public Radio, freezing rain brought down trees at a home near Petoskey, Mich., Sunday, March 30, 2025. (Brian Brachel/Interlochen Public Radio via AP)
In this photo provided by Jesika Fox, an ice storm knocked down trees and power lines on Sunday, March 30, 2025, in Alpena, Mich. (Jesika Fox via AP)
A bush is coated with thick ice outside the National Weather Service office in Gaylord, Mich., Sunday, March 30, 2025, after freezing rain caused thousands of power outages in the region. (National Weather Service visa AP)
A broken tree rests in a yard after a storm in Howell, Mich., Sunday, March 30, 2025. (Chad Livengood/Detroit News via AP)
A tree lies fallen atop the rear section of a car near the intersection of Beech Street and Division Street on Sunday, March 30, 2025, after severe thunderstorms and high winds in East Lansing, Mich. (Arthur H. Trickett-Wile/MLive.com/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)
A tree lies fallen atop the rear section of a car near the intersection of Beech Street and Division Street on Sunday, March 30, 2025, after severe thunderstorms and high winds in East Lansing, Mich. (Arthur H. Trickett-Wile/MLive.com/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)
A tree lies fallen between two vehicles at a residence near the intersection of Beech Street and Division Street on Sunday, March 30, 2025, after severe thunderstorms and high winds in East Lansing, Mich. (Arthur H. Trickett-Wile/MLive.com/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)
A tree lies fallen between two vehicles at a residence near the intersection of Beech Street and Division Street on Sunday, March 30, 2025, after severe thunderstorms and high winds in East Lansing, Mich. (Arthur H. Trickett-Wile/MLive.com/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)
In this photo provide by Jesika Fox, freezing rain and ice brought down power lines and trees in Alpena, Mich., Sunday, March 30, 2025. (Jesika Fox via AP)
In this photo provide by Jesika Fox, freezing rain and ice brought down power lines and trees in Alpena, Mich., Sunday, March 30, 2025. (Jesika Fox via AP)
A tree lies fallen between two vehicles at a residence near the intersection of Beech Street and Division Street on Sunday, March 30, 2025, after severe thunderstorms and high winds in East Lansing, Mich. (Arthur H. Trickett-Wile/MLive.com/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)
A tree lies fallen between two vehicles at a residence near the intersection of Beech Street and Division Street on Sunday, March 30, 2025, after severe thunderstorms and high winds in East Lansing, Mich. (Arthur H. Trickett-Wile/MLive.com/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)
In this photo provided by Interlochen Public Radio, freezing rain brought down trees at a home near Petoskey, Mich., Sunday, March 30, 2025. (Brian Brachel/Interlochen Public Radio via AP)
In this photo provided by Interlochen Public Radio, freezing rain brought down trees at a home near Petoskey, Mich., Sunday, March 30, 2025. (Brian Brachel/Interlochen Public Radio via AP)
In this photo provided by Jesika Fox, an ice storm knocked down trees and power lines on Sunday, March 30, 2025, in Alpena, Mich. (Jesika Fox via AP)
In this photo provided by Jesika Fox, an ice storm knocked down trees and power lines on Sunday, March 30, 2025, in Alpena, Mich. (Jesika Fox via AP)
A bush is coated with thick ice outside the National Weather Service office in Gaylord, Mich., Sunday, March 30, 2025, after freezing rain caused thousands of power outages in the region. (National Weather Service visa AP)
A bush is coated with thick ice outside the National Weather Service office in Gaylord, Mich., Sunday, March 30, 2025, after freezing rain caused thousands of power outages in the region. (National Weather Service visa AP)
A broken tree rests in a yard after a storm in Howell, Mich., Sunday, March 30, 2025. (Chad Livengood/Detroit News via AP)
A broken tree rests in a yard after a storm in Howell, Mich., Sunday, March 30, 2025. (Chad Livengood/Detroit News via AP)
Freezing rain brought down trees and power lines in Michigan and Wisconsin, cutting electricity for thousands of people Sunday in the upper Great Lakes region, while forecasters said severe weather was on its way to Tennessee.
Winds topping 70 mph (112 kph) were possible for the middle of Tennessee, with a chance of tornadoes as well as hail as large as 2 inches (5 centimeters) Sunday night, the National Weather Service said.
“Have your safe place cleaned out just in case,” forecasters said on social platform X.
More than 400,000 power outages were reported in Michigan, Indiana and Wisconsin. Churches that had power, as well as schools and fire halls, were turned into warming centers as utilities worked to restore electricity, a job that will likely stretch into Monday in small communities and rural pockets.
The Weather Service office in Gaylord, Michigan, was in the middle of it, saying on X: “Accumulations range here from a half inch to nearly a whole inch of ice!”
Despite the calendar showing spring, “it’s still winter,” said Ryan Brege, managing director of the Alpena County, Michigan, Road Commission, 250 miles (402 kilometers) north of Detroit.
Alpena Power said nearly all of its 16,750 customers — homes and businesses — were in the dark. Many churches without power in Wisconsin and Michigan were forced to cancel Sunday services.
“We pray that everyone stays safe!” said Calvary Lutheran Church in Merrill, Wisconsin.
Jesika Fox said she and her husband drove more than 40 minutes from their home in Alpena, Michigan, to find fuel for a generator. Her family lost power Saturday night but kept the house warm by using a fan to circulate heat from a gas-burning stove.
“We just passed a veterinary clinic. The entire front corner of the building was taken out by a tree,” said Fox, 36.
Sarah Melching, emergency services manager in nearby Presque Isle County, said virtually the entire county — population 13,200 — has no power.
“There are trees still falling down. It’s kind of ruthless out there,” Melching said.
Authorities in South Carolina reported progress Sunday in controlling wildfires in the Blue Ridge mountains. The Table Rock and Persimmon Ridge fires have burned about 17 square miles (44 square kilometers). Mandatory evacuations were ordered Saturday for some residents of Greenville County.
“Thank you for the prayers. They’re being heard. There’s rain in the air,” said Derrick Moore, operations chief for the firefighting Southern Area Blue Team.