Snow caused problems on roadways

The official recorded snowfall of the winter season began overnight, depositing less than an inch on the ground at OHare. The snow is, of course, made the commute slippery.

Officials at the National Weather Service reported that about a half-inch of snow fell overnight at O'Hare International Airport, marking today as the fifth latest date that snowfall was recorded in the Chicago area.

Amy Seeley, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service, said Midway recorded about three-tenths of an inch, as did Mundelein in Lake County. Woodstock in McHenry County recorded one-tenth of an inch, Elgin reported four-tenths of an inch, and Downers Grove recorded a half-inch, she said.

She added the overnight snowfall ensured Chicago did not break a record for the latest first snowfall of the season. That mark was set on Dec. 16 in 1965, she said.

The snowfall today ties 1948 as the fifth-latest date for first measurable snow, but the good news is that any year that didn't see measurable snow before Dec. 5 resulted in below-average snowfall from December through February.

The light dusting is expected to move out of the area by 9 a.m., she said, but will leave cold weather in its wake. She said highs will reach the mid-to-upper 20s today with winds out of the west at 10 to 15 mph.

Temperatures will continue to fall overnight with lows in the midteens.

The Illinois Department of Transportation is asking people to slow down in the wake of the snowfall as slick conditions are reported on all expressways.

Accidents are being reported on Harlem Avenue in Oak Forest, on Schaumburg Road in Streamwood, Route 59 in Barrington and on the Jane Addams Tollway near Lee Street.

Other accidents were reported in Bartlett, Mount Prospect, and Lemont.