The snow came after the Chicago area woke up to Saturday morning to temperatures as low as -6 early. The temps reached into the teens and the snow was over by 9 p.m., but none was as bad as what was to come Sunday night.
A Winter Storm Warning was issued for 9 p.m. Sunday to 6 p.m. Monday for Kenosha, Racine and Walworth in Wisconsin. A Winter Storm Watch will go into effect 6 p.m. Sunday to 6 p.m. Monday for Lake and McHenry counties in Illinois.
The warnings come as heavy snow -- maybe 3-6 inches of snow, upwards of 10 inches in the northern suburbs -- is expected to fall Sunday into Monday.
RELATED: ABC7 AccuWeather Forecast
WATCH: Polar Plunge at Lake Michigan in Chicago
18th annual Polar Plunge
The 18th annual Polar Plunge fundraiser was held Saturday afternoon at the Oak Street Beach in Chicago. Hundreds of people jumped into Lake Michigan as air temps hovered at 4 degrees at noon, and water temps were about 30 degrees.
RELATED: Find a Chicago area warming center near you
Temperatures are not expected to get beyond the teens and that caused problems for pipes and roads.
Roads not as slick Saturday evening
In Calumet Heights, a water main broke early Saturday. The water from the break can freeze within minutes when exposed to the morning's freezing temperatures. Crews are on the scene trying to clear the icy mess.
Polar Vortex Explainer: Get ready for bitter cold the next few weeks
Polar Vortex Explainer: Get ready for bitter cold the next few weeks
BLACK ICE, SNOW CAUSE SLICK CONDITIONS, CRASHES
Icy conditions cause crashes
Snowy and slick road conditions Friday night into Saturday morning caused several traffic accidents in parts of the city and suburbs.
Two people were injured in a crash near South Canal Street and South Archer Avenue. The vehicle the victims were riding in crashed into a viaduct at approximately 1:30 a.m.
Both victims, a woman in serious condition and a man in critical condition, were taken to Stroger Hospital.
On Westbound I-80 near Harlem Avenue, a tanker truck turned over at approximately 1 a.m. Westbound lanes of the highway were closed for several hours as crews cleared the road. No serious injuries have been reported. All lanes reopened by Saturday afternoon. The crash is under investigation.
Tanker truck overturns on I-80
Two crashes were also reported in I-55 northbound early Saturday. One crash occurred at milepost 261 near Illinois Route 126, and the other at milepost 259 near Lockport/Plainfield Road. Both crashes resulted in lane closures.
TRANSIT AGENCIES, IDOT PREPARED FOR COLD WEATHER
Arctic cold air brings dangerous conditions
Despite dealing with freezing switches in some areas, a few rail breaks and some mechanical failures, Metra said it had some residual delays but kept things moving and to prevent issues crews have been using fire to heat up parts of the tracks to keep the metal from contracting.
Metra said it will keep traffic off of that one track that has the break so they can fully repair it. However Metra expects this cold spell to wreak a lot of havoc.
Metra said it now has signal crews on 12-hour shifts around the clock so that someone is always available. In the train yards Metra will have extra personnel because it will not shut off its locomotives over the weekend.
During the extreme cold, the Illinois Tollway launched around-the-clock road patrols so they can quickly help any stranded drivers and respond immediately to calls that come in to *999 motorist assistance.
To stay safe in these extreme cold, the Tollway recommends that you have your cell phone fully charged before heading out, be sure tires are properly inflated, keep your gas tank at least half full to avoid gas line freeze-up and keep a cold weather safety kit in your car, Items like a flare, blanket and flashlight.
AAA is ready to respond to hundreds of phone calls from people in need of roadside assistance
"If you're heading out today make sure your gas tank is full so it can keep you warm if you're stuck and make sure you have plenty of warm gear in the car with you," AAA spokeswoman Beth Mosher.
Mechanic Chris Barrett of Chippers Auto Care in Darien said the negative temperatures are hard on your vehicle, especially your tires.
"Mainly it is tires," Barrett said. "No matter what you do, the tires are going to lose air."