Storm death toll hits five in suburbs

The number of suburban deaths related to this week's blizzard has risen to five.

Three DuPage County residents, all men in their 60s, died from heart attacks suffered while shoveling snow Wednesday, the county coroner's office reported Thursday.

And a Mundelein woman found dead in her car following this week's blizzard likely died from cold-related causes, officials said.

Susan Smith, 57, was discovered about 5 p.m. Wednesday in her car outside Alpine Chapel, 1180 Heather Drive, Lake Zurich. Smith, who had been missing since Tuesday, worked at the church, Lake County Coroner Richard Keller said.

The engine of Smith's car was off when relatives found her, and the vehicle was not out of gas, Keller said.

Smith had diabetes, but it was not immediately known if the disease contributed to her death. An autopsy is scheduled for Friday.

The deaths Wednesday followed the fatal heart attack suffered by David Shotts, a substitute teacher in Barrington Unit School District 220 who collapsed as he walked through a school parking lot during the initial assault of the blizzard Tuesday afternoon.

In DuPage County, a 69-year-old man died died about 1:42 p.m. at Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove, where he was rushed after collapsing while shoveling.

A 62-year-old Carol Stream man who went back into his house after suffering chest pains while clearing snow died shortly after 6 p.m. Wednesday at Central DuPage Hospital in Winfield, despite lifesaving efforts.

A 69-year-old Glendale Heights man was found unresponsive by his wife a short time after returning to his house after shoveling snow for five hours. The Glendale Heights Police Department responded, and the man was pronounced dead at the home at 7:45 p.m. Wednesday.

The coroner's office continues to investigate the snow-related deaths. Identities of the victims have not been released.

An autopsy is scheduled today for Gregory Myers, 48, of Grayslake, who was found dead in his car at 11 p.m. Tuesday night. While Lake County Coroner Richard Keller said the death appears to be from natural causes, tests are being done to determine whether carbon monoxide poisoning could have played a role.

Also, police said a 60-year-old Chicago man died after falling into Lake Michigan near Belmont Harbor Tuesday night.

As the Chicago area continues to dig out from the third largest snowfall in recorded history, meteorologists are warning people should bundle up to protect themselves against freezing temperatures.

Weather forecasters reported a high of 4 degrees at O'Hare International Airport this morning, with wind chills making it feel like a negative 15 degrees.

At those temperatures, officials said, hypothermia and frostbite can set in within 30 minutes.

In the meantime, though, agencies are still digging out after 20.2-inches fell on the Chicago area Tuesday night and Wednesday morning.

Lake Shore Drive, considered the worst of the roads closed by the blizzard of 2011, officially reopened at about 7 a.m. this morning, officials said.

However, officials warned of slick roadways everywhere, and urged drivers to use extreme caution when traveling.

Officials reported isolated pockets of traffic congestion due to snow being on the roads. Arlington Heights Road and Algonquin Road in Arlington Heights and Illinois Road between Barrington Road and North Roselle Road near Streamwood were among the worst locations, traffic officials said.

Most counties opened closed roads with areas cleared as best as possible considering the amount of snow that fell. However, motorists should still use caution when traveling because of drifting snow due to windy conditions.

Kane County officials said Route 72 remains closed from Walker Road to the west county line because some vehicles remain in the roadway. Officials expect to have those removed later today.

McHenry County closed portions of Route 120 and Route 173 for a few hours this morning to continue snow removal. Those roads should be opened intermittently throughout the morning. All McHenry County government centers will remain closed again today. Officials said they expect to reopen tomorrow.

A few flights landed at O'Hare International Airport late Wednesday and early Thursday morning, officials from the Chicago Department of Aviation reported. However, clean up continues at the airport and cancellations are still ongoing.

Officials said 1,000 flights at O'Hare were canceled Thursday while 30 were canceled at Midway. Today is expected to be an extremely busy travel day at the airport as passengers stuck in Chicago during the blizzard will be trying to rebook flights out. In all, 2,200 flights were canceled at O'Hare and 400 flights were canceled at Midway Tuesday and Wednesday because of the snowstorm, officials said.

They said people should continue to monitor their flights over the Internet before coming to the airport to catch a flight.

As of 10 a.m. Thursday morning, only 4,600 ComEd customers remained without power in the Chicago area, with 4,300 of those customers located in Chicago. Officials from the utility said power should be completely restored today.

Between 10 and 15 Des Plaines residents were still without power at about noon today, said John Pluta, the city's Emergency Management Coordinator.

At one point Wednesday, more than 2,000 Des Plaines homes were without power. However, ComEd worked though the night to restore power to most Des Plaines customers, Pluta said.

“When you consider the storm we had, I think the response has been remarkable,” he said.

Metra officials said the Metra Electric line, Rock Island, Southwest Service, Heritage Corridor, Milwaukee West, Milwaukee North, and North Central Service are operating normally this morning. The rail service's other four lines will operate with reduced schedules today.

The Metra website is reporting delays of between 20 and 30 minutes system wide because of the cold and snow. For more information about service changes or delays, please check the Metra website at metrarail.com.

An autopsy is scheduled today for Gregory Myers, 48, of Grayslake, who was found in his car at 11 p.m. Tuesday night. Lake County Coroner Richard Keller said the death appears to be natural causes, but tests are being done to determine whether carbon monoxide poisoning could have played a role.

Daily Herald staff writers Anna Madrzyk, Russell Lissau, Eric Peterson and Sheila Ahern contributed to this report.