Freezing rain to hit Chicago area Sunday night

CHICAGO (Sun-Times Media Wire) - Light snowfall that began peppering the Chicago area Sunday afternoon is expected to transition into freezing rain by the evening hours, forecasters said.

The snowstorm, which started moving through the area around noon, should bring less than an inch of accumulation, according to the National Weather Service.

Chicago’s Department of Streets and Sanitation deployed 211 vehicles to respond to the snowfall, according to a statement from the agency. Salt spreaders are working to keep Lake Shore Drive and the city’s main roads safe and passable before possibly transitioning to residential streets.

The daytime high should reach 32 degrees before temperatures drop 4 degrees at night, the weather service said.

After the snow pushes through area, the city and surrounding suburbs could see a few rounds of freezing drizzle before the start of the work week, the weather services said in a hazardous weather outlook. If the rain starts coming down, drivers should look out for “a light glaze of ice” on untreated roadways.

Monday’s forecast calls for a chance of more freezing rain before 4 p.m. followed by a “wintry mix” of rain, snow and sleet that could affect the area until Tuesday afternoon, the weather service said.

About 3 p.m. Tuesday, another round of snowfall is expected before conditions clear up on Wednesday, when sunny skies and temperatures in the low-30s are in the forecast, the weather service said.