Chicago-area weather forecast: Snow storm blows through Chicago; Winter Storm Warning in effect for parts of NW Indiana
CHICAGO (WLS) — A band of snow moved into the Chicago area Wednesday morning, creating slick conditions for the morning commute.
A Winter Storm Warning is in effect until 1 p.m. ET Thursday for La Porte and Starke counties in Indiana and Berrien County, Michigan.
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There is a Winter Weather Advisory until 9 a.m. Thursday for Porter County.
The storm dropped 3 inches of snow in Gurnee, along with 2.5 inches of snow in Arlington Heights, 1.7 inches of snow in Oak Lawn and 1 inch of snow in Tinley Park.
A burst of winter snow blew through Chicago Wednesday morning.
It also sparked a snow squall warning for parts of the area, which has since expired.
Bands of heavy snow are expected to continue Wednesday afternoon, bringing several inches of snow.
Snow will continue through Wednesday night into Thursday morning before tapering off during the day on Thursday.
Wednesday afternoon, there were a series of crashes on the Indiana Toll Road.
They are blocking eastbound and westbound lanes near mile marker 94.
Roughly 30 vehicles were involved, Indiana State Police said.
Traffic is being diverted at the Mishawaka Toll Plaza (exit 83) and Elkhart East Toll Plaza (exit 96).
There’s been a white blanket of snow, but really it’s the wind that’s been brutal in Indiana.
There is a Winter Storm Warning in effect for parts of the Chicago area.
But it’s also been driving people to give back to those in need.
“We have diapers, candy, canned food, cereal,” said Crystal Nelson, who works at the YMCA. “Yeah, they’ve been coming and taking it.”
Nelson says the Duneland YMCA started a food pantry a week ago. She says they refill almost every hour.
“The food is disappearing as fast as it’s going in,” Nelson said. “I feel like we might need a bigger one; we need to help more. Maybe that’ll come.”
She said last year the Duneland Family YMCA in Chesterton gave out 66,000 meals to children and senior citizens. Now, with the pantry up and running, she says giving back is the one bright spot on what’s a cold and slightly miserable snow day.
“I want Florida weather; 90s and hundreds come this way,” Nelson said.
The YMCA is on Roosevelt Street in Chesterton.
“You wouldn’t believe how cold it is. You know, it’s, they’re saying it’s like 30 degrees. But you know what the wind it’s, it feels like it’s zero out,” Indiana resident Tim Moore said.
Those like Moore say the wind makes it feel like it’s hail coming down. He says he plans on sitting by his fireplace all day. But others are taking advantage.
“I mean: We do a lot of stuff outside, right? Yeah, side-by-sides, and, yeah, wheeling and stuff. So you could still do that in snow,” Chesterton resident Emily Garza said.
Despite the wind making visibility hard on the roads, Garza says this time of year is kind of magical.
“Yeah, I say, keep it going after the holidays. What else do you have to look forward to, I guess, besides spring,” she said.
Many are not fans of the weather, but said they’ve seen a lot worse.
The weather has created slick roads across the area, with several crashes reported on Interstate 57 in Kankakee County.
It was just after 7 a.m. when precipitation started to come down, and by 7:30 a.m. it was a full-blown winter weather event.
“It’s really crazy,” Treshawn Hill said. “This might be a snowstorm today!”
Little Treshawn Hill was right, as he and his mom dodged blowing snow whipping their face on their way to school.
“I might go to school and throw some snowballs,” Hill said.
Commuters were seen making a run for it to CTA stations as a major snow burst blew through the area. People sprinted to get inside.
Near white-out driving conditions made for dangerous travel, with snow piling onto cars and dropping visibility within minutes. There were also heavy snow-covered sidewalks slowing the morning commute.
“I saw out the window. And I was like, ‘oh it’s not that bad,’ and then ‘whoosh’ as soon as I came outside,” Chris Ross said.
Ross had to hop off his scooter because of the wet pavement.
“Usually, if it’s not too slippery, I can try to push it through. But it was smacking me in the face, and I literally couldn’t see anything. And it is dangerous, right, super dangerous yeah,” Ross said.
“Yesterday it was so warm, and it really did just come out of nowhere,” Nick Flemens said. “I figured why not just do iced coffee. It’s still good even on a day like this.”
“I got like three jackets on,” said Kenny Stratton, who works at Soldier Field. “This weather’s gonna be cold at Soldier Field.”
Stratton said this is just a warm-up for what’s to come on Sunday, when the Chicago Bears take on the LA Rams in the divisional round playoff game.
“It’s crazy,” he said. “It’s Chicago. That’s all it is: Bears weather!”
The conditions led to a ground stop for arriving planes at O’Hare, which has since been lifted.
Temperatures across the area will drop steadily throughout the week.
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