Consumers Energy to Assess Damage, Start Restoring Power After Ice and Snow Blanket Northern Michigan

Jackson, Mich. Monday, March 16, 2026

Consumers Energy is deploying over 480 crews to assess damage and start restoring power after a powerful storm pummeled Northern Michigan late Sunday and early this morning with ice and snow.

It was the second round of severe weather to affect Michigan customers since Friday, and Consumers Energy continues to monitor today’s forecast for high winds across the state.

“This storm has had a tremendous impact on Northern Michigan, particularly from Cadillac to Alpena. We will work closely with community leaders to ensure we’re serving our communities and restoring power as soon as we can do so safely,” said Norm Kapala, one of Consumers Energy’s officers in charge for restoration. “No matter how many times the weather tries to test Michigan, we will be ready to respond.”

Ahead of Sunday’s storm, Consumers Energy pre‑staged resources, positioning crews, equipment and materials where they were needed most. Critical support operations and logistics were also secured in advance to ensure crews could stay focused on the work. Crews will continue to work around the clock in 16-hour shifts to respond to outages in Northern Michigan and statewide.

March weather has hit Michigan hard, throwing nearly everything at the state from tornadoes to freezing rain. Crews restored power to more than 160,000 customers affected by the first storm system that moved through the state Friday.

Consumers Energy emphasized that safety remains the #1 priority for customers, communities and crews. Work will be carried out carefully amid challenging conditions statewide, including downed trees, damaged equipment and today’s high winds.

Consumers Energy urges neighbors to pay attention to travel advisories and not travel unless needed. Customers can continue to check the status of outages at www.ConsumersEnergy.com/OutageCenter. They can also sign up to get outage alerts and restoration times sent to a phone, email or text message, Text ‘REG' to 232273 or visit www.ConsumersEnergy.com/alerts. 

Consumers Energy urges the public to keep important safety tips in mind: 

• Be alert to crews working along roads. Drivers should slow down or stop and wait for oncoming traffic to clear so they can go safely past. 

• Stay at least 25 feet away from downed power lines, and report unguarded downed lines by calling 9-1-1 and Consumers Energy at 800-477-5050. Consumers Energy reminds people that falsely calling in downed lines actually slows down the restoration process for everyone. 

• Never use a generator in an attached garage, basement, enclosed patio or near any air intakes. Doing so could cause a generator to produce hazardous levels of carbon monoxide, an odorless, colorless and deadly gas. Read more guidance on safe generator use here. 

• Consumers Energy will trim or remove trees interfering with electric restoration activities. Once safe to do so, cleanup ofdebris from tree trimming or removal during a storm emergency is the responsibility of individual property owners. 

• In some cases, the mast that holds the electric service wires to a home or business may have been damaged or torn away. Crews will reconnect the wires to a home, but only a licensed electrician can repair or replace a mast or a cable. 

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Members of the media are reminded to call 1-800-557-4625 to reach a Consumers Energy Media Relations representative 24/7.