Severe Weather Disrupts U.S. East Coast, Midwest

A severe weather outbreak impacted the eastern United States and a historic blizzard affected the Midwest on Monday, March 15, 2026, causing widespread power outages and significant travel disruptions. The Storm Prediction Center issued a Tornado Watch for Washington D.C. and the Mid-Atlantic region until 7:00 p.m. ET, citing a volatile environment capable of producing tornadoes, large hail, and destructive winds exceeding 80 mph. Concurrently, a ground stop was implemented at Washington Dulles International Airport until 11:45 a.m. ET, affecting East Coast arrivals due to heavy rain and increased wind shear.

Across the eastern U.S., over 443,000 customers experienced power outages as of late Monday morning. Michigan reported 114,000 outages, while Ohio had 54,300. States like Pennsylvania (30.7K), Mississippi (22.4K), and Georgia (20.4K) also reported significant line damage from falling trees and intense gusts. Flight disruptions surpassed 21,100 between Sunday and Tuesday, according to FlightAware, as the aviation industry contended with both the Midwest blizzard and the East Coast squall line.

In the Midwest, Wisconsin was on the verge of setting new snow records, with preliminary reports indicating a potential 34.0 inches in Mountain, Wisconsin, which would surpass the current 48-hour state record of 33.0 inches set in April 2007. Sturgeon Bay also reported 33.2 inches. These preliminary totals await verification by the State Climate Extremes Committee. Emergency services in Green Bay, Wisconsin, were observed battling a fire amidst blizzard conditions.