Snow, heavy winds cancel hundreds of flights; 30 mph gusts in forecast
BY TINA SFONDELES Staff Reporter tsfondeles@suntimes.com February 10, 2012 2:04PM
Erin Tulley shields herself from the snow with a magazine while walking on the Wells St. Bridge Friday, Feb. 10, 2012, in Chicago. | John J. Kim~Sun-Times
Updated: February 11, 2012 1:28AM
An arctic front continues to bring snow and heavy winds to the Chicago area,
The forecast for Saturday included a low of 14 degrees, with wind gusts of up to 30 miles per hour.
The weather canceled at least 300 flights at O’Hare International Airport and made the roads a mess for travelers Friday night.
The snow caused problems at the city’s airports. The Department of Aviation on Friday said 300 flights at O’Hare Airport were canceled due to weather conditions, while other flights are experiencing delays of 90 minutes or more. At Midway Airport, a few cancellations have been reported and flights are being delayed 30 minutes or more.
The Department of Streets & Sanitation’s Snow Command sent out 75 plows to patrol the main streets and Lake Shore Drive late Friday morning, but as snow fell harder, that number was increased to 183, half of the city’s main fleet.
The Illinois Tollway mobilized its full fleet of 183 snowplow trucks.
For northwest Indiana, a total of six to twelve inches of snow is likely where the heaviest lake effect band occurs, with isolated totals of up to 18 inches possible. Snowfall rates within the most intense snow band Friday evening into the overnight hours could exceed two to three inches per hour, according to the weather service.
Because of the localized nature of lake effect snow, accumulations can vary significantly over very short distances, and so many areas in Lake County, Ind., especially the southern portions, could end up with less than six inches.
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