As spring has begun to appear across the lower half of the state, the Upper Peninsula is expected to deal with up to half an inch of ice accumulation over the weekend.
The ice storm comes after the region dealt with a wintery mix of rain sleet throughout the week, with the snow not ending in some areas until this Friday morning with thousands waking up to power outages.
Ben Warren, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Marquette, said the incoming ice storm is expected to last through Saturday afternoon.
"This one's a bit more freezing rain accumulation versus the wintry mix and mess that we had late yesterday into this morning," Warren said. "Right now we do have ice storm warnings for issued for all of the UP except for the northern Houghton and Keweenaw counties in the northern portions."
Second Winter Storm:
— NWS Marquette (@NWSMarquette) April 3, 2026
- Timing: Tonight into Saturday
- Moderate to potentially major impacts expected from ice accumulations
- Difficult Travel
- Power outages and tree damage likely
If you have travel plans, consider alternative plans and have a winter survival kit in your car. pic.twitter.com/km0Vswl0Sg
According to Warren, not much snow is expected to fall during this period, with the highest amounts potentially being around an inch or two in the Keweenaw Peninsula.
The storm is not supposed to be as big as last spring's ice storm that hit the northern Lower Peninsula. However, it could result in similar impacts if the ice amounts get into higher levels.
"Freezing rain is probably one of the more impactful winter weather phenomena," Warren said. "Even up here where we get hundreds of inches of snow a year, freezing rain can be far more impactful than even the deadliest blizzards up here."
Warren said this is because of ice's ability to weigh down on power lines and accumulate on the roads.
Several thousand utility customer were without power in the eastern Upper Peninsula after the snowstorm that concluded Friday morning.
Cloverland Electric Cooperative, one of the major utility providers in the eastern Upper Peninsula, told WCMU they have all available crews out to help restore power and are ready for the next wave of weather this weekend.
"We have notified our members to prepare for potential new outages," said Cloverland's Abby Moran. "It does look like this storm is going to bring more freezing rain and potentially ice, so it's very likely new outages will occur."
These ice storms are not a new thing for the region, according to Warren, especially during this time of year. Warren says they're just getting more attention due to the magnitude of the major ice storm last year.
"That northern lower storm really put ice storms kind of on the forefront of everybody's mind," Warren said. "I could say that issuing these ice storm warnings are fairly uncommon at this magnitude. But having freezing rain storms are, in the grand scheme of things, a commonality in the late winter, early spring."
Warren says these late-season storms are the most difficult to forecast due to their ability to change dramatically within short distances.
"So, knowing that things can change and staying up to date with the forecast is always a good idea," Warren said.
