Blizzard in Wisconsin, January 26 to 27, 1996

Name: Blizzard in Wisconsin, January 26 to 27, 1996
Start: 1996-01-26T14:00
End: 1996-01-27T03:00
Location: Wisconsin

January 26 to 27, 1996 · NWS MPX · 7 events in 7 counties and zones

Strong winds and heavy snow reduced the visibility to less than one quarter mile at times. Many roads reported impassable in Eau Claire and Dunn counties.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 7 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

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The toll

Deaths: 1
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 7

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS MPX wrote it up.

Strong winds and heavy snow reduced the visibility to less than one quarter mile at times. Many roads reported impassable in Eau Claire and Dunn counties. Eau Claire received 9 inches of snow, Menomonie 8 inches and Barron 6 inches. An Elk Mound woman died of exposure about 50 yards from her home after her car became stranded in the blizzard conditions.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

7 blizzard. Local standard time, as filed.

Blizzard, Barron

When: January 26, 2:00 PM CST to January 27, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Barron forecast zone
Coordinates: 45.424, -91.848 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Blizzard, Rusk

When: January 26, 2:00 PM CST to January 27, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Rusk forecast zone
Coordinates: 45.475, -91.133 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Blizzard, Pierce

When: January 26, 2:00 PM CST to January 27, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Pierce forecast zone
Coordinates: 44.720, -92.422 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Blizzard, Dunn

When: January 26, 2:00 PM CST to January 27, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Dunn forecast zone
Deaths: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates: 44.947, -91.896 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Blizzard, Pepin

When: January 26, 2:00 PM CST to January 27, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Pepin forecast zone
Coordinates: 44.483, -92.150 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Blizzard, Chippewa

When: January 26, 2:00 PM CST to January 27, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Chippewa forecast zone
Coordinates: 45.069, -91.280 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Blizzard, Eau Claire

When: January 26, 2:00 PM CST to January 27, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Eau Claire forecast zone
Coordinates: 44.727, -91.286 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

Event	Date	Age	Sex	Where	Kind
Blizzard, Dunn	1996-01-27	44	Female	Outside/Open Areas	Direct

What these are

Blizzard: Sustained winds or frequent gusts of 35 mph or more with falling or blowing snow that cuts visibility below a quarter mile for three hours or longer.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Wisconsin in 1996 Every state in 1996 This day in weather history Warnings in Wisconsin, January 1996

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5538887, 5538888, 5538889, 5538890, 5538891, 5538892, 5538893.