Winter Storm Warning: 20+ States Affected as Up to 60 Inches of Snow Accumulation Looming and a 63° Drop Confirmed
Throughout much of December 2025, winter storm warnings have been piling up as much of North America has been hit by an extremely challenging month of weather. Then, reports surfaced about unseasonably warm temperatures coming in, which may have resulted in hopes that the worst of the winter weather was through.
Sadly, a recently released winter storm warning published by a trusted source of weather reports shows that cold weather conditions are far from gone. Instead, a huge portion of North America is facing days of harsh weather conditions, with more than 20 states poised to be deeply affected.
Up to 60 Inches of Snow Accumulation Slated To Arrive
REUTERS/Aaron Josefczyk
On December 29, 2025, AccuWeather published a winter storm warning detailing a series of dangerous weather conditions that are slated to affect Americans from a wide array of different regions. As a part of that report, the weather service revealed that areas from Michigan, New York, Chicago, and Indiana will face heavy snow as a result of Arctic air traveling from the waters of the Great Lakes. The article also stated that the Upper Midwest and interior Northeast could be hit by two overlapping snowstorms. That means that Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Illinois, Indiana, Nebraska, and Ohio could all be facing snowstorms.
While the article mostly refrained from listing how many inches of snow most of those regions could be facing, it was specific in some ways. The article warned that the winter storm could pose hazards for motorists on the Interstate 70 and 80 corridors. Additionally, the article stated that airline delays from the Midwest to the Northeast could be expected. Most notably, the article named one state that could face an accumulation of up to 60 inches of snow.
"Combining the snow that fell from the big storm this past weekend, some areas in Michigan may end up with 48-60 inches of snow from this past Sunday to Friday of this week."
Winter Storm Warning States That 63° Drop That Feels Like an up to 90° Fall Has Hit
In addition to the pending snowfall, AccuWeather's winter storm report also reveals that severe temperature drops will affect many American regions. According to the aforementioned report, areas from the Plains to the East Coast and Gulf Coast states will be dealing with an extreme temperature drop caused in part by wind chill. Just based on that description, more than 20 states could be affected by the temperature drop. However, the main states that AccuWeather's article indicates are poised to be the most profoundly affected are Missouri, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Minnesota, and North Dakota.
Following recent reports of record-breaking warm temperatures in some parts of America, those regions are being hit by a severe cold wave. Accuweather's report states that St. Louis, Missouri, has been facing an extremely shocking temperature swing. The article states that on Sunday, the region was enjoying 78° weather. However, once the cold wave came in on Monday, the actual temperature dropped to 15°, and the RealFeel temperature went a low as -12°. That meant that the area faced an actual temperature drop of 63° and a RealFeel temperature drop of 90°, which is staggering to consider. The article also states that the Plains and the Mississippi Valley saw a 40° to 60° temperature drop between Sunday and Monday. The same Accuweather report stated that the cold front will continue to spread overnight from Monday into Tuesday.
The winter storm warning doesn't state when the cold front is expected to abate. However, another AccuWeather report about the cold front expected to affect America states that the freezing temperatures are expected to last into the first days of 2026.