Bomb cyclone powers through Midwest, leaves trail of cold, snow and outages
A bomb cyclone—a rapidly deepening low‑pressure system—raced across the northern United States on Monday, unleashing blizzard‑type snowfall, ice, rain and wind that battered the Plains and Great Lakes. “A pretty significant system for even this part of the country,” said Cody Snell, a meteorologist with the Weather Prediction Center. The National Weather Service warned that the storm’s pressure drop met the criteria for a bomb cyclone, a classification reserved for systems that intensify dramatically over a short period.
Temperatures in the northern Plains fell sharply, with wind chills in parts of North Dakota and Minnesota plunging to minus 30 °F. The agency issued white‑out alerts, noting that travel could become impossible in affected areas. In Iowa, the storm prompted the closure of more than 200 miles of Interstate 35 as high winds continued to drift fallen snow across roadways. State troopers reported dozens of crashes, including one that killed a driver.
Power outages surged as the storm’s wind and ice strained electric lines and trees. Nationwide, nearly 220,000 customers were without electricity by Monday night; Michigan alone experienced over 70,000 outages, roughly a third of the national total. Utilities warned that the combination of freezing rain and strong winds could further damage infrastructure.
The Great Lakes region endured severe impacts. Lake Superior’s waves rose to 20 feet, sending nearly every cargo vessel into harbor for shelter. On Lake Erie, a strong southwest wind pushed water toward the basin’s eastern end near Buffalo, New York, while exposing the lakebed on the Michigan side. Maintenance worker Kevin Aldrich, 33, of Monroe, Michigan, documented the unusual exposure, noting that pilings from the 1830s now rose several feet above the water. “Where those are at would typically be probably 12 feet (3.6 meters) deep,” he said.
Meteorologist Ryan Metzger reported that the Upper Peninsula of Michigan saw up to two feet of snow in some locales, and additional snowfall was expected in the coming days, though totals would be lighter. The storm also delivered rain and a wintry mix across parts of the Northeast, with freezing rain reported in northern New York and threats extending into Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.
The bomb cyclone’s after‑effects will linger as forecasters anticipate continued lake‑effect snow, further power restoration challenges, and ongoing travel disruptions into the weekend.