Bomb Cyclone Triggers Blizzard Conditions Across Midwest and Great Lakes
A powerful winter storm intensified rapidly into a blizzard-producing bomb cyclone over parts of the Midwest and Great Lakes during the weekend of March 14–15, 2026. The system first developed across the Northern Tier of the US, including Montana and the Dakotas, before moving eastward toward the Great Lakes. Impacts from the storm have continued into Monday, March 16.
Wind gusts near the center of the storm are expected to reach between 60 and 75 mph, conditions capable of downing trees, damaging infrastructure, and causing widespread power outages. According to data from poweroutage.us, more than 414,000 customers across the US have already lost electricity.
Millions across the Northern Tier, from Montana to Michigan, remain under Winter Weather Alerts as the storm intensifies. Winter Storm Watches are issued across the western Great Lakes, while parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin, South Dakota, and Montana continue to be under Winter Storm Warnings.
Northern Michigan is under an Ice Storm Warning, and Blizzard Warnings affect more than 11 million people from the Dakotas to Illinois. Snow has been falling at rates of 1 to 3 inches per hour in parts of Wisconsin and Michigan, pushing totals above 20 inches from southern Minnesota to central Wisconsin, with about 28 inches reported in Marinette, Wisconsin.
Actionable Analytics on EigenPrism
Forecast
Winter Storm Dataset
All EigenPrism® users can assess the forecasts associated with this event using the following report templates:
This report template enables you to assess the forecast of the winter storm based on footprints from NWS. The report consists of 72-hr Forecast Freezing Rain Accumulation, 72-hr Forecast Snow Accumulation, Potential Winter Storm Overall Impact, and 6-Day outlook of the pipe-freeze risk for CONUS by Adiabat. The pages auto-update with the latest available data.
This report template enables you to assess the summary level forecast (Potential Overall Winter Storm Impact) and four component WSSI (Winter Storm Severity Index) footprints from NWS. The four component WSSI footprints consist of Potential Snow Amount Impact, Snow Load Impact, Ice Accumulation Impact, Blowing Snow Impact. The report template pages auto-update with the latest available data.
Post-Event
All EigenPrism® users can assess the post-event impact of the snow accumulation as of Feb 23, 2026, using the following event footprint:
Alerts
Users who have alerts set on their exposures for the relevant event sets, like those from NWS and Adiabat, will receive alerts (if the event footprints impact these exposures).
To learn more about how to set an alert on a specific event set, check out this help center article.
Feel free to contact us at Prism.Support@eigenrisk.com or reach out directly to your Customer Success Manager with any questions or concerns. Our team is here to assist you with setting alerts, understanding report templates, and maximizing the actionable insights available through EigenPrism®.
Not an EigenPrism User? Here’s a Quick Way to Check ZIP-Level Impact
For underwriters, brokers, and portfolio managers who need fast visibility into impacted ZIP codes, we’ve built a tool called ZIP Response on our website. It’s a free, no-login tool that highlights the top ZIP codes that are most impacted during active events, such as hurricanes, floods, wildfires, and severe storms.
You can request the complete ZIP list by simply filling out a short form and get it delivered straight to your inbox.
If you’d like to explore the impacted ZIP codes for this event, visit ZIP Response.
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