Chicago area bracing for first snowstorm of season

Periods of heavy snow are expected throughout the evening. Much of the Chicago area can expect to see two to four inches of snow by Friday morning. Areas North and West can expect to see six inches of snow. (Source: WGN TV)









As the Chicago area braced for its first snowstorm of the season, people were being warned to stay off highways and expect widespread power outages as high winds whip up near blizzard conditions in some spots.


The approaching storm was also creating havoc at O'Hare and Midway airports on the eve of the busiest travel day of the holiday season.


Airlines have canceled nearly 300 flights at O'Hare and more than 150 flights at Midway. Southwest Airlines scratched all of its flights scheduled after 4:30 p.m. today at Midway.








Flights headed toward O’Hare were experiencing delays averaging nearly two and a half hours, according to the FAA. Midway-bound flight delays were about 15 minutes or less.


 The long-awaited snow is expected to hit the western suburbs around 4 p.m. as temperatures drop and the winds pick up, the National Weather Service said. The heaviest snow will fall from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. with wind gusts of 50 to 60 mph. Three to 7 inches is expected in the far northwest suburbs, 2 to 4 inches in Chicago and 1 to 3 inches in the south and southwest suburbs.


The weather service says the winds will be the real problem. "We may not get a whole lot of snow but the potential for snowing, drifting and poor visibility is very high," weather service meteorologist Mark Ratzer said.

In its storm warning, the weather service said the greatest chance of near white-out conditions is near the shoreline in Lake and Porter counties in Indiana. The storm warning is in effect from 3 p.m. until 3 a.m. Friday.

In western Illinois and Wisconsin, a blizzard warning is in effect with as much as a foot of snow forecast. Snow could fall 1 to 2 inches an hour around Rockford late in the afternoon, the weather service said.

To the south, a high wind advisory has been issued for Kankakee County. And in Indiana, a lakeshore flood warning is in effect for Lake and Porter counties.

The storm will end a record stretch of 290 days without snow in the Chicago area. This will also be the latest the city has seen its first measurable snowfall.


"It's going to be a shock to the system," said weather service meteorologist Ed Fenelon. "It's coming in with a bang."


ComEd said it was bracing for power outages because of the storm. The company said it was preparing additional crews and equipment and asking for help from other utilities to respond quickly to outages.

ComEd Vice President Terence Donnelly said the storm was “expected to be especially damaging” to the company's power system because of the combination of wind, snow and ice.


The Illinois Toll Highway Authority urged motorists to stay off the highways this afternoon.

"This weather event is expected to impact most of the tollway system – from Rockford to Chicago – resulting in rapidly deteriorating driving conditions across the entire region,” tollway executive director Kristi Lafleur.  “We urge everyone to stay off the roads this afternoon and evening, if possible, but if you must drive, slow down and allow plenty of extra time for the commute home.”

The agency said it was mobilizing its full fleet of 182 snowplows on the 286-mile toll road system.


Illinois Transportation Secretary Ann Schneider also said that “motorists should think twice before venturing onto roadways” Thursday night and urged drivers and their passengers “to buckle up, slow down and allow plenty of extra time to reach your destination. And, please don’t crowd the snow plows.”

IDOT was mobilizing more than 550 snow plows responsible for roads in northern Illinois while the Illinois Tollway was preparing its full fleet of 182 snow plows to try and clear the 286-mile network of toll roads in 12 counties in northern Illinois.

If conditions become extreme, the Illinois State Police is urging drivers involved in minor accidents where no one is injured to exchange insurance and driver information.

The agencies also provide multiple ways to receive updates electronically. Non-tollroad information can be found at www.gettingaroundillinois.com. Real time conditions on tollroads are available at www.illinoistollway.com. Drivers also can sign up for Tollway Tweets at the website or at www.twitter.com.

The Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation said it was readying its main fleet of nearly 300 trucks.  More than 200 of them are ready to go, and another 150 trucks can be dispatched if necessary, according to department spokeswoman Anne Sheahan.

The city has 285,000 tons of road salt on hand.
 
The department’s primary concern is icy conditions that could make the evening commute difficult, Sheahan said. She cautioned all drivers to be aware of driving conditions and department trucks out on the road.


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