Snow, freezing rain creates icy conditions early Wednesday
Snow quickly covered the suburbs Tuesday evening before freezing rain moved in to create ice danger on roads overnight.
At least a couple of inches were seen in Northwest suburbs and reported in DuPage County and Fox Valley suburbs.
The snow is part of a winter storm that the National Weather Service had warned could bring up to 9 inches of snow in some suburbs up north as well as dangerous ice and winds overnight.
ABC 7 Chicago reported the following snow totals at 10:15 p.m.:
• Carol Stream, 4.5 inches
• Elburn, 4.2 inches
• Batavia, 3.6 inches
• Elk Grove Village, 3.0 inches
The National Weather Service then warned of icy conditions overnight resulting from freezing rain moving into the area as temperatures slowly rose.
ABC meteorologists said earlier snow would be moderate to heavy at times, falling at a rate of 1 to 2 inches an hour, leading to rapidly deteriorating road conditions.
And the National Weather Service had expanded its winter storm warning to northern Cook County.
In the Northwest suburbs, the weather service warned of heavy mixed precipitation, with snow accumulations of 4 to 6 inches, “locally higher,” and ice accumulations of up to one-tenth or two-tenths of an inch.
Wind gusts of up to 35 mph were also predicted.
“Plan on slippery road conditions and periods of sharply reduced visibility early to mid evening,” the weather service warning said. It also warned “some power outages are possible due to the combined effects of wet snow accumulation, some icing, and wind gusts.”
Heavy, wet snow may be difficult to shovel, too, the service said.
In McHenry, Lake and Kane counties, the weather service warned of up to 9 inches of snow.
“Plan on snow or slush and ice covered roads and periods of sharply reduced visibility, especially late this afternoon into this evening,” the service said.
DuPage and Will counties were expected to be moderately affected by the storm, which could turn to freezing rain overnight.
Warmer weather is expected to move into the area Wednesday morning, diminishing the threat of icy roads throughout the day.
At the Hinsdale Oasis along the Illinois Tollway, heavy snow prompted many truckers to pull over and wait out the storm, with visibility getting worse by the minute in the late afternoon, ABC 7 reported.
“We have our full complement of crews out there preparing, doing last-minute checks of the snowplows, making sure they're all ready to go,” said Maria Castaneda, spokesperson for Illinois Department of Transportation. “We have over 125,000 tons of salt in reserve. So we're definitely ready to be out there right now.”
“This is probably the first major storm in a while, so even seasoned drivers who have been through many Chicago storms, it's time to be familiarizing yourself, getting used to that braking distance,” Castaneda added. “One of the main things that we always tell people is, you know, and especially in the height of a snowstorm, if you don't need to be out there, then don't.”
Road crews in Barrington were quickly deployed Tuesday afternoon, salting and clearing the streets with an emphasis on the village's main arteries, ABC 7 reported. Barrington has about 12 trucks in its fleet.
Public Works Director Jeremie Lukowicz said their crews were ready for this months ago.
“Prior to winter even starting — back in October, November — we start checking all our machines, making sure everything is ready to be deployed,” Lukowicz told ABC 7. “Having this occur overnight allows us to hopefully get everything clean before they have to head out the next morning.”