A winter storm warning remained in effect in the Chicago area early Tuesday, as a major snowstorm continued to cover parts of the region, prompting extremely dangerous conditions.
The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning for Kankakee, Kendall, Will, Grundy, Livingston and DuPage counties in Illinois, along with Lake, Newton and Jasper counties in northwest Indiana. start Sunday evening and will remain in effect until 9 a.m. Tuesday.
There are winter weather warnings in LaSalle, Kane, McHenry and DeKalb counties until 9 a.m. Tuesday, according to the NWS, while Cook County and Lake County in Illinois will remain under a winter storm alert. until 12 at night.
When a snowstorm began affecting the Chicago area on Monday, city officials deployed more than 300 plows and salt spreaders with the goal of keeping roads clean and helping people stay safe. Kate Chappell, of NBC 5, reports.
The NWS urged Illinois residents Monday night to exercise extreme caution while traveling, predicting that the winter storm hitting the region would be “maximum in intensity” in the late evening hours.
The storm, which has already thrown more than a foot of snow in some areas of the area, will hang over the area until Tuesday morning.
Lake and Cook counties are expected to bear the brunt of the storm, with lake-effect snow contributing to higher local snowfall. According to the NWS, several inches of snow are possible before the storm moves out of the area, with maximum totals expected five to ten miles from Lake Michigan.
Already at Chicago Midway Airport, 15.9 inches of snow have fallen, while 13 inches were reported in the southern suburb of Oak Lawn and 12.3 inches in Harwood Heights.
More snow combined with rainy winds will keep visibility on the roads during Tuesday morning’s ride.
An additional total of several inches of snowfall is expected, with the highest accumulations along and east of Interstate 57.
Brant Miller