Winter storm warning: 10 inches of snow possible by Wednesday night across Chicago area
CHICAGO - Darn Groundhog! Did you know that two of the top five biggest snowstorms in Chicago history have taken place on Groundhog Day?
February 1-2 of 2011 saw 21.2 inches of snow fall amid 60 mph wind gusts. That’s No. 3 on the list. Coming in at No. 5 is what is remembered here as the "Super Bowl Storm" of 2015 as it was centered around that football game. But it, too, took place during the Feb. 1-2 period when woodchucks are tapped for their meteorological expertise. That one brought 19.3" to Chicago.
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It is unlikely that this year’s Groundhog storm will threaten those numbers but it will be a doozy.
Snow was falling at a rate of an 1 inch an hour during the morning rush making it very difficult for road crews to keep up.
The main thrust of the snow had shifted late morning to the Southwest Side and along Interstate 57. Over 8.2 inches were recorded at Midway International Airport, 9.5 inches in suburban Midlothian, and 9 inches in Homewood, according to the National Weather Service.
Totals were lower on the North Side but still substantial. The Lake View neighborhood reported 7.1 inches by 10 a.m. and suburban Harwood Heights reported 4.5 inches.
The rate of snowfall tapered off at noon to around one-tenth of an inch per hour.
The morning rush was down to a crawl in many areas. Metra was reporting few delays, but CTA Green Line trains were not running between Garfield and Cottage Grove because of signal problems.
More than 370 flights have been canceled at O’Hare and around 80 at Midway Airport.
Dozens of schools in the Chicago area were either closed Wednesday or offering remote lessons. Check out the list of school winter storm closings here.
A Winter Storm Warning remains in effect for much of the state until 6 p.m. Wednesday.
While it won’t be a blizzard, there will also be just enough wind to blow some of this stuff around.
This afternoon and even more so toward evening the intensity of the snow will diminish then finally "end" tonight. I use quotes because it won’t be over for everyone.
By tonight, the heart of the Metro will have picked up 6 to 10 inches with the possibility of some foot-plus totals over the southern half of our viewing area. This is especially the case well south of I-80 toward the K3 River Valley.
The second wave of snow for tomorrow continues to appear as a miss for Chicagoland staying well south.
However, tonight and tomorrow there will be some lake-effect snow which could add some additional light accumulations mainly on the IL side of the water.
Homer Glen reports 3.3" already as of 2:45am with a 2.0" report in Naperville from about an hour earlier. Beyond Thursday it’s cold and quiet through the weekend.
The Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this report.