It was a relatively quiet start to 2026, with winter storms bringing heavy snow to the typical snow belts. The hardest-hit states included Michigan and New York, where lake-effect snows have added up, with some areas seeing well over 100 inches.
However, the Mid-South, Mid-Atlantic, and even the Northeast hadn’t seen as active a start. In fact, these regions began the year with temperatures above average, some even having top ten warmest starts to January. But all of that changed on Jan. 23.
At one point, a large storm stretched over two-thousand miles, with millions of people under a weather alert.
Southern snow and ice totals
Two storm systems merged as arctic air surged south across much of the U.S. By Jan. 23, snow began falling in New Mexico. The highest snowfall accumulated near Bonita Lake, NM., where 31 inches of snow fell.
As the storm emerged east of New Mexico into Texas, it picked up moisture from the Gulf. Snow, sleet and freezing rain fell across the South. Dallas and Fort Worth, TX., picked up 1 to 2 inches with bitter cold that followed.
Northern Arkansas and Oklahoma saw higher totals, ranging from 6 to 8 inches, with a mix of sleet and freezing rain in parts of Arkansas.
Mid-South snow and ice
By Saturday, Jan. 24, snow and ice moved through the Mid-South, with the heaviest snow occurring Saturday night into Sunday across Kansas, Missouri, Kentucky and Illinois.
With cold air in place in Missouri, snowfall totals range from 5 inches around Kansas City to over a foot of snow south of St. Louis. Kentucky saw snow at the onset before switching to a mix of snow and sleet, which limited the totals.
As the storm moved through Illinois, Indiana and Ohio Saturday into Sunday, it was mainly a snow event. Totals ranged from 6 to 9 inches across the region.
The Northeast and New England snow
With cold air in place in the north, it was an all-snow event in this region. The storm dumped over a foot of snow onto New York City, with the Boston area picking up nearly two feet of snow Sunday through Monday evening.
York, Maine, in the southern part of the state, accumulated 20 inches of snow.
Mid-Atlantic snow and ice
Snow fell in parts of the Mid-Atlantic before changing to sleet. Washington D.C. saw nearly 7 inches of snow before it mixed with and changed to sleet.
Central North Carolina picked up a few flakes before it mixed with and changed over to sleet. While not as icy as freezing, sleet still caused treacherous road conditions.
Southeast snow and ice totals
The colder air was in place in the northern parts of Alabama, Georgia and Upstate South Carolina. Some snow fell at the onset of the storm before mixing with and changing to sleet and freezing rain. Ice Storm Warnings were posted on Sundy and Monday across the region.
Severe side of the storm
The National Weather Service confirmed that five tornadoes touched down on Sunday. Four of them in Alabama and one in Florida. The highest rated tornado was an EF2 with winds estimated of 115 mph in Geneva County, Ala.
Airport delays
With all of the intense weather of the pass few days, airport delays and cancelations are prevalent. Here’s the latest below.
Cold air remains locked in place for the eastern two-thirds of the country.
Our team of meteorologists dives deep into the science of weather and breaks down timely weather data and information. To view more weather and climate stories, check out our weather blogs section.
Meteorologist Stacy Lynn
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