Road conditions in Chicago and Illinois were icy and “dangerous” Tuesday morning, with freezing rain expected to continue during the morning commute.
NBC 5 Meteorologist Alicia Roman said, “If your area doesn’t receive treatment, this morning will be dangerous and hazardous conditions.” “We saw some ice build up this morning.”
NBC 5 Meteorologist Alicia Roman reported as of 5:15 a.m. that only rain was falling in some areas as temperatures hovered between -32 degrees. Cold rain continues to fall in other areas, including Kane and DeKalb counties in Illinois and Gary and Valparaiso counties in Indiana.
Illinois roads, suburban driving conditions
The Kane County Sheriff issued an alert early Tuesday, asking residents to “make every effort” to stay off the roads Tuesday morning as “extremely icy conditions” are expected.
“The Kane County Sheriff’s Office is asking the community to make every effort to avoid driving this morning due to the extremely cold weather, especially in rural Kane County,” the alert said. “We have seen many vehicles run off the road overnight, many tow companies not responding until conditions improve, and snowplows having to back up just to keep salt under their tires. I have experienced it.”
The Kane County Sheriff’s Office later sent an update saying the road was now more “passable.”
“It’s still very slow driving and it’s still icy in some areas,” the sheriff said.
Kane County also moved to close all non-emergency offices due to the weather.
The National Weather Service also warned motorists that roads and untreated sidewalks near and south of Interstate 88 were “covered with ice.”
“Please use caution when exiting your front door,” the NWS says. “Don’t trust shiny surfaces.”
NBC 5 reporter Jen DeSalvo, who was in the western suburbs of Carol Stream on Tuesday, said roads became wet and slippery and “visibility was significantly reduced.”
NBC traffic reporter Kai Martin reported several spinouts and slides Tuesday morning, including on westbound Interstate 88 in Downers Grove, Schaumburg at Irving and Roselle, and the Edens Expressway in Toohey. .
Martin also reported that traffic lights were down in some areas.
ComEd said Monday that crews are adding personnel and preparing equipment in case of a power outage.
“We are positioning our crews and equipment to respond quickly and safely to disruptions caused by this ice storm,” said ComEd Chief Operating Officer David R. Perez. “We understand that power outages can be an inconvenience to our customers, especially during winter weather systems. We are investing in the grid and our crews are standing by to support the 9 million people who rely on reliable power.”
In Indiana, officials recommended Tuesday morning that trips be postponed or canceled due to slippery roads.
“Expand your stopping and following distances and assume that anything that looks wet/shiny is ice,” a tweet from the Indiana Department of Transportation reads.
More than 60 schools in the Chicago area reported closing or switching to e-learning schedules Tuesday due to the frigid temperatures.
according to flychicago.comMore than 100 flight cancellations were reported at O’Hare International Airport and Midway International Airport.
How to check road conditions in Illinois
Here’s how to check nearby road conditions before commuting.
When will the ice conditions end?
The winter weather advisory will end at 9 a.m. for southern counties and 12 p.m. for northern counties, with light snow accumulations of up to 1 inch expected in a short period of time, the NWS said. late morning hours.
Scattered showers are expected to linger into the afternoon, followed by fog, which is expected to continue into Wednesday, Roman said.
Roman said the rain is expected to stop by Tuesday evening.
Showers return Wednesday morning, with another round of wet weather returning late Wednesday into Thursday.
Roman said the rain will subside as the work week ends, but clouds will remain and fog and cloudy conditions are expected to continue into the weekend.
“It’s the end of a gloomy and dry week,” Roman said.
Tuesday’s high temperature is expected to be 36 degrees, just above average for this time of year, Roman said. Temperatures will gradually increase as the week continues, eventually reaching the low 40s by the end of the week.
