Freezing rain warning; storm out east snarls flights
If you're hoping to fly to the East Coast in the next day or two, good luck.
A powerful blizzard has begun to hit a 250-mile swath of the East Coast, and the storm will continue through Tuesday, forcing the cancellation of about 220 flights out of O'Hare and Midway airports and about 6,000 flights nationwide. Many will not be rescheduled until Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the National Weather Service has issued a freezing-rain advisory that lasts until 6 a.m. today. The service is predicting ice accumulations of less than a tenth of an inch, but enough to possibly create slippery conditions.
“Roads remain icy and very hazardous across much of northern Illinois due to the freezing drizzle that has been falling. Numerous accidents have been reported, including on major roadways,” the weather service posted on Facebook.
On that note, ABC 7 Chicago reported that the Eisenhower Expressway's inbound lanes were closed between Wolf and Mannheim roads for a couple of hours as crews applied to salt to combat ice.
As of late Monday afternoon, 190 flights at O'Hare and more than 30 flights at Midway were canceled, most because of the storm, according to Chicago's Department of Aviation.
Nationwide, United Airlines canceled flights into Boston, New York and Philadelphia. JetBlue, which serves the Northeast, canceled about one-third of its entire schedule.
Most major airlines are allowing customers whose flights are canceled in the next few days to book new flights without paying a penalty. Customers ticketed on flights to dozens of Eastern airports are generally eligible for the allowance, though specific terms vary by airline.
The DePaul vs. Providence men's basketball game set for Tuesday has been postponed and tentatively is rescheduled for Thursday in Providence, R.I., according to the team.
The National Weather Service predicts two to three feet of snow in Boston and New York. Philadelphia should get 14 to 18 inches.
• Daily Herald news services contributed to this report