Chicago Winter Storm: timing, snow amounts, and other hazards
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The first major winter storm of the season is bearing down on the Chicago area, with the first snow arriving in Chicagoland by Thursday morning, strong winds blowing in by the afternoon, and temperatures plunging to the single digits by Thursday night, and the bitter cold staying through Christmas.
SNOW TIMING AND AMOUNTS
The snow makes it to the far western suburbs (De Kalb County, etc.) by 9 a.m. Thursday, and gets to the city of Chicago by noon and to northwest Indiana counties by early afternoon.
Snow totals are expected to reach 2 to 7 inches for the Chicago area. Porter and LaPorte counties in northwest Indiana will see more snow with strong winds coming in off the lake. Porter could total 7 or 8 inches and LaPorte could total more than a foot.
Some areas may experience snowfall of one inch per hour.
WIND
The wind picks up as we go through Thursday afternoon. They're really powerful Thursday night through Friday, with sustained winds of up to 39 mph, and gusts of up to 50 mph. Strong winds continue through Friday.
Those winds will pick up the snow that has fallen, and could create blizzard conditions in some areas. The falling snow should end early Friday, but the snow on the ground can still create a blizzard. It's called a ground blizzard.
BLIZZARD
Criteria: Sustained wind or frequent gusts of 35 mph. Falling snow or blowing snow on the ground lowering visibility to ¼ mile or less for a period of 3 hours.
FLASH FREEZE
We start Thursday pretty mild. Road salt does its job, but as temperatures crash Thursday afternoon, the wet roads can freeze. The ice that forms can be under the snow, and it all makes for dangerous driving conditions. A flash freeze is a possibility.
CRASHING TEMPS AND WIND CHILLS
The official temperature for Chicago, measured at O'Hare Airport, will be around 32 degrees at 10 a.m. Thursday, dropping to 12 degrees by 4 p.m., and as low as -4 at 7 a.m. Friday. The wind chill is 26 at 10 a.m. Thursday, -6 at 4 p.m. and -31 at 7 a.m. on Friday.