6-8 inches of snow expected; flights canceled

The second significant snowstorm of the year is headed for the Chicago area Friday, with the hardest-hit areas expected to accumulate between 5 and 8 inches.

Bitter cold will continue throughout Friday morning with below zero wind chills.

Although both O'Hare and Midway airports' operations were normal this morning, airlines at O'Hare had cancelled more than 280 flights in anticipation of the snowfall later, according to from the Chicago Department of Aviation.

At Midway, Southwest Airlines has canceled all flights - 70 - scheduled for today between 2 and 5 p.m. This is approximately 15 percent of all flights scheduled at Midway today.

Snow will likely begin falling during the mid-to-late morning hours Friday and continue through the afternoon into Friday night, according to the National Weather Center. The heaviest snowfall will occur during the afternoon.

A winter storm warning will be in effect from 9 a.m. Friday until midnight for Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake and McHenry counties.

Meteorologists originally called for less snow, but bumped the projected accumulations up two inches late Thursday night.

The most snow is expected to fall in the far northern suburbs, and snow could fall at rates of an inch per hour at times reducing visibility, according to meteorologists.

Very cold temperatures during Friday's commute will make salt trucks less effective on the roadways, according to the weather center.

Some suburban schools having already announced plans to close early. A complete list can be found here. If your kids are out of school and you're looking for ways to enjoy the weather, check out our staff's picks for things to do in the suburbs.

And, believe it or not, a new story is out predicting a warmer winter for most of the country and a town in Indiana is canceling a snowman contest because they don't have enough snow.