Deadly Winter Storm ‘Fern’ Threatens Massive Power Outages Across Eastern US

Thick snow, sleet and freezing rain—paired with dangerously low temperatures—are forecast to sweep across roughly two-thirds of the eastern United States from Sunday through next week, raising concerns about disruptions to natural gas supplies and widespread power outages.

Quoting CNBC on Sunday (Jan. 25, 2026), the US National Weather Service said the winter system, dubbed Storm Fern, could affect more than 170 million people. Fourteen states across the South, Midwest and the Mid-Atlantic have issued emergency declarations.

Forecasters warned that severe ice accumulation in some areas could trigger prolonged blackouts, extensive tree damage and broader ecological impacts, while making roads extremely hazardous or even impassable.

At first glance, the storm’s impact may appear limited to scattered customer outages. But interruptions to natural gas supply during extreme cold can quickly turn dangerous, as seen in Texas during Winter Storm Uri in February 2021, when more than 4 million people lost power for several days.

That blackout was driven in part by a collapse in gas-fired power generation after fuel supplies tightened, with wells and pipelines freezing and preventing adequate deliveries to plants.

At least 210 people died during that storm. Many deaths were linked to the power outage, including cases of hypothermia, carbon monoxide poisoning and medical conditions worsened by subfreezing temperatures.

This year, however, available power supply is expected to be tighter than in previous years. In the current situation, grids in many parts of the United States are under mounting pressure due to rising demand from data centers and the slow pace of new power plant construction.

One US grid watchdog, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), has warned that surging data center energy use could complicate efforts to maintain adequate electricity supply during extreme-demand events such as severe winter weather—particularly in states like Texas.

“Strong load growth from new data centers and other large industrial end users is driving higher winter peak demand forecasts and contributing to ongoing supply adequacy risk,” NERC said in an analysis published in November 2025.

Against that backdrop, Energy Secretary Chris Wright has asked grid operators to ensure backup generation resources are available at data centers and other critical facilities as needed during the storm this weekend.

“The Department of Energy is prepared to issue orders that would bring backup generation online to prevent power outages,” Wright said in a letter to US grid operators.

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