Winter Storm Warning: Multiple inches of snow in Chicago area disrupts holiday travel
Hundreds of flights canceled, delayed at O'Hare, Midway; holiday tourists enjoy snow; some IHSA championships rescheduled, moved
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A Winter Storm Warning is in effect for most counties in the Chicago area until 6 a.m. Sunday as several inches of snow are expected to drop over 24 hours.
Areas in and around Chicago and Northwest Indiana were expected to see 5 to 8 inches of snow while areas to north and west of the city were expected to see more than 8 inches of snow. Wind gusts were expected up to 30 miles per hour at times.
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ABC7 AccuWeather meteorologists said the heaviest snow fell between noon and 8 p.m. Saturday.
As of 6 p.m. Saturday, 6.9 inches of snow were measured at O'Hare. The current snowiest November day in Chicago was on Nov. 6, 1951, when there were 8 inches. The second snowiest November day was on Nov. 26, 1975 with 7.5 inches. Other parts of the Chicago area have already measured at least 7.5 inches of snow Saturday evening, such as in Barrington.
At around 9:05 p.m., O'Hare Airport had a total of 1,208 cancellations and Midway Airport had 246 cancellations. Officials said average delays were 43 minutes at O'Hare and 24 minutes at Midway.
The roads also proved to be treacherous across the area, from the city to suburbs. Snow and ice blanketed the highways, causing spinouts in Dundee and Waukegan. A family in Winnetka had to be helped out of a ditch.
Hundreds of Illinois Department of Transportation crews spent hours treating and clearing area interstates.
"Across our entire state, we think we'll see somewhere between 8 to 12 inches before it's done," IDOT Secretary Gia Biagi said. "So, really we're entering the thick of it right now and that is of our most concern. So if you don't have to travel, please don't."
Chicago crews also helped to pave a way through the snow by tackling main city roads first.
"We gotta make sure the emergency vehicles the police fire the ambulance, the buses folks driving we're gonna make sure that you can move around on those main arterials," Chicago Streets and Sanitation Commissioner Cole Stallard said. "And that's when we transition to the inside when those main arterials are good to go."
Slick, snowy conditions led to a 45-vehicle crash on Interstate 70 near Terre Haute, Indiana. A Department of Transportation camera showed a long line of cars, trucks and SUVs scattered across the road way.
Part of of the interstate was shutdown for several hours until the crash was cleared. Indiana State Police say there were no serious injuries.
This travel season is already expected to break records. AAA says more than 4 million people are traveling this holiday weekend, which is a nearly 2% increase from last year.
The snow did not stop some people from coming out and celebrating the holidays. People were out in Chicago, shopping, playing in the snow, and Christkindlmarket in Daley Plaza had lines all day.
Christkindlmarket Aurora closed at 2 p.m. and Christkindlmarket Wrigleyville closed at 4 p.m. due to the snow, organizers said. Christkindlmarket downtown Chicago was remaining open until 9 p.m.
It was a winter wonderland across Chicago as the snow continued to fall Saturday and some people are enjoying every bit of it.
Many people visiting Chicago on Saturday from other states say it was a pleasant surprise.
"This is perfect," said Daniel Fridman from St. Louis. "I looked outside this morning, and said this is exactly the day for us to go out there."
"I love it," said David Gillanders from California. "The only time we get this is if we go on snowboard ski trips at local mountains, which is cool, but you're not walking around where you live with snow falling all the time, so it's amazing."
It was a different story for lifelong Chicagoans who have been dreading this storm and the long winter ahead.
"I hate the winter, I hate it, but we love this town, we love Chicago," a Chicago resident said.
Many people still got some holiday shopping in across downtown during the storm, and the Christkindlmarket was bustling all day as people even stood in some long lines waiting to get in.
"Just been enjoying the city, and now we're getting this, so we're gonna get an extra day in the city, because our flight got canceled," said Clay Fidler from Arkansas.
The IHSA Class 5A-8A Football State Championship games that were supposed to be held Saturday at Illinois State University in Bloomington have been postponed due to the snowstorm, the university announced Friday. The Class 1A-4A football games were played as normal on Friday.
The impacted games are 5A St. Francis vs. Providence Catholic, 6A Fenwick vs. East St. Louis, 7A St. Rita vs. Brother Rice, and 8A Mount Carmel vs. Oswego. The 5A and 6A games will now be played on Tuesday at ISU, and the 7A and 8A games will now be played on Wednesday at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, officials announced Saturday.
After the snow moves out, cold will remain Sunday, with overnight lows in single digits. There is potential for parts of the area to see a switch over from snow to rain Saturday night and Sunday morning.
For the Midwest and East Coast, the storm could create dangerous conditions for the thousands of people heading back home after Thanksgiving.
