The tip of Michigan's mitten struggled through another day without electricity Tuesday as restless residents tried to stay warm while utilities scrambled to restore power in a region waylaid by weekend freezing rain that brought down countless trees and poles.

It could take several days before power comes back on in parts of Northern Michigan in aftermath of an ice storm.

The sounds of tree branches cracking and ice rattling windows echoed around Northern Michigan over the weekend as ice storms battered the region. According to meteorologist Joe Delizio at the National Weather Service office in Gaylord,

The state of emergency applies to 10 counties in the northern Lower Peninsula hit by widespread power outages from a weekend ice storm.

The main issue, according to Andy Sullivan, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service office in Gaylord, is going to be wind gusts forecast to be 30 mph or stronger.

The Mackinac Bridge is closed to all traffic Tuesday due to hazardous ice falling from its cables and towers, according to the Mackinac Bridge Authority. The closure was announced just before 9 a.m. The bridge will reopen when conditions improve, but motorists should avoid the area in the meantime.

The Mackinac Bridge has closed again because of ice falling off the suspension bridge that connects both of Michigan's peninsulas via Interstate 75. Mackinaw City Police Department issued a notice to the public at 9 a.m. Tuesday, informing motorists of the conditions reported by the Mackinac Bridge Authority. A reopening time was not known.

Prior to its reopening, the authority said in a post on X: "Consensus of our maintenance staff is that it's the worst we've ever seen on the bridge," in reference to the ice.