4-4-25 governor evers declares state of emergency for northern wisconsin

MADISON — Gov. Tony Evers today signed Executive Order #256, declaring a state of emergency due to severe winter weather, including heavy ice and snow, affecting large portions of the state in Northern Wisconsin.   “As Northern Wisconsin still works to recover from severe weather over the weekend, with more storms on the way tonight, this declaration will help support local efforts to restore power where there are outages, support local efforts to clear debris, set up warming shelters, and respond to local emerging needs, and keep folks, families, and communities safe,” said Gov. Evers.  Beginning on Saturday and continuing through today, severe weather, including high winds and heavy ice and snow, affected large portions of the state, causing widespread and significant damage, including continued loss of heat for homes or water, tree and structural damage, and power outages.   The Evers Administration continues to be in active communication with local community officials, utility companies, the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin, and Wisconsin Emergency Management regarding power restoration efforts. Communities and electric utilities are working around the clock to restore power to communities, clear debris, and set up sheltering and other emergency protective services for local residents, among other key efforts. Crews are working diligently to restore power in affected areas in addition to the more than 130,000 utility customers statewide whose power has been restored. For the most updated information on the estimated time of restoration, Wisconsinites are encouraged to contact their utility company or co-op directly.  At this time, although Wisconsin Emergency Management has not received a formal request from local communities or counties to declare an emergency, given the ongoing efforts to restore power to folks who need it and the potential for concerning weather that could further affect Northern Wisconsin, Gov. Evers is exercising his authority to declare a statewide state of emergency across Wisconsin.  Gov. Evers’ declaration of a state of emergency will help ensure state agencies, local partners, utilities, and emergency management officials can continue working together and respond quickly to damage and effects caused by recent severe weather, as well as any anticipated severe weather.   More heavy snow and severe weather are expected in the coming hours and days that could cause additional damage and may require additional resources such as backup power generation, emergency communications, and shelter services to protect the health and safety of Wisconsinites, especially in Northern areas.