A strong winter storm system dropped over a foot of snow in parts of Chicago's south suburbs and Northwest Indiana on Wednesday.
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2-Day Snow Totals:
Mokena - 14.3 inches
Chesterton - 14 inches
Valparaiso - 13.5 inches
Kankakee- 13 inches
South Haven -13.5 inches
St. John - 13 inches
Minooka - 12.6 inches
Cedar Lake - 12.5 inches
Dyer - 11 inches
Morocco - 11 inches
Midway Airport - 11 inches
Midlothian - 10.8 inches
Coal City - 10.5 inches
Oak Lawn - 10.5 inches
Joliet - 10.2 inches
Lynwood - 10 inches
Braidwood - 10 inches
Lakeview (Chicago) - 7.8 inches
North Aurora - 5 inches
People all across Joliet were digging out Thursday, with many of them surprised by just how much snow blanketed the area.
"We've seen a few but this one we didn't expect it to be this big," resident Leon Shaw said. "But it's here and we're making the best of it."
Joliet residents dig out after heavy snow
In south suburban Peotone, Wilmington Road was closed between US 45 and120th Avenue. Chopper 7HD flew above the scene with at least a dozen cars stuck in the snow. The road was back open by 11 a.m.
Cars trapped in snow in Peotone
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Meanwhile, the Chicago area continues to dig out from Wednesday's snowstorm, with many side streets packed with snow.
Eddie Guillen and the other volunteers at his West Lawn Snow Angels had their work cut out for them as they hoped to help the southwest side neighborhood dig out.
"With the weather dropping, we want to make sure they have somewhere to walk," Guillen said. "It's snowing, it's cold. We definitely want to help them out and be of service whatever we can do to help out the community."
City plows finally took to neighborhood side streets after first clearing and salting the main thoroughfares. The remnants of the strong winter storm that dumped nearly a foot of snow in some places are everywhere.
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David Dailey's car was trapped in it for 15 minutes on his way to work at the intersection of Pine Grove Avenue and Grace Street in the Lakeview neighborhood. He was just making a turn.
"Yeah it's frustrating," Dailey said. "I wish that they would plow and I know we got some rain before the snow and sometimes it's a little harder to salt, but the past couple times we had snow it seems like they haven't been really on top of it."
Over in the 13th Ward, which is just south of Midway Airport, Alderman Marty Quinn was out and about with a few volunteers to clear snow. It's a part of a program he started some 10 years ago.
So far, nearly every household in his ward has asked for some kind of help.
"It's what's good about Chicago," Quinn said. "Chicagoans look out for each other."
"So in partnership with the alderman's office, we're able to kind of come together and do a lot more," said State Rep. Angelica Guerrero-Cuellar, D-22nd District. "The list is about 600 people."
Meanwhile, Chicago's winter is now in full effect - and so is the Windy City tradition of "dibs."
"I'm not too familiar with it because I'm not originally from Chicago," Luis Rizo said. "I moved here from Miami so...I lived in New Jersey when I was younger so I know what to put up with...I get it."
Some residential streets have been left littered with all sorts of items ranging from chairs to crates and buckets to even a child's bicycle - all in an effort to claim a parking space - often spent hours clearing out.
"Do I do it? Yeah, but we do because it's a lot of work!" Bridgeport resident Donna Codina said.
At the city's airports, 537 flights have been canceled at O'Hare, with an additional 116 flight cancellations at Midway as of 12:02 p.m.