Weather causing icy problems for morning motorists

Officials said black ice created after heavy rains Sunday and a sudden drop in temperatures early Monday is causing treacherous roadways throughout Illinois and the Chicago area.

State police officials said cars spinning out into ditches are commonplace on major and minor roadways as about one-tenth of an inch of ice has built up in some areas overnight.

They said about a dozen accidents have pockmarked the roadways throughout the Chicago area since about 6 a.m.

One of the worst areas, officials said, is the Tri-State Tollway where a semi has jack-knifed in one northbound lane near Cicero. In addition, cars are having trouble making it up on-ramps on I-55, I-90 and I-294 and I-80.

The weather also has caused traffic signal lights in Libertyville and Vernon Hills to flicker near Route 176, officials said.

The ice and weather is also being blamed for train delays, officials said. Iced up power lines and tracks are forcing trains to run significantly slower, officials said.

The ice has reduced traffic to a crawl, officials added, and that people should definitely slow down to ensure arriving to destinations safely. They also are warning motorists to be prepared for frozen car doors and locks when approaching their vehicles for the first time in the morning.

Meteorologists from the National Weather Service said more than an inch-of rain fell throughout the area when temperatures reached as high as 50 degrees Sunday.

But, a cold front moved in from the west which reduced temperatures down to the teens early Monday morning. The temperature drop caused the rain to turn to sleet and ice overnight, they said.

Heavy winds gusting up to 40 mph have accompanied the temperature drop throughout the Chicago area.

Temperatures are expected to remain in the teens or drop even farther throughout the day, meteorologists said.

Check back to dailyherald.com throughout the morning for additional information as its released by officials.

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