White-out conditions were reported on several expressways, and more than 400 flights were canceled at O'Hare and Midway airports, as blowing snow hit the Chicago area in time for the afternoon rush Thursday.
Visibility was down to a matter of yards along some stretches of Interstate 80-94 through the south suburbs late in the afternoon, according to the Illinois Department of Transportation.
"We are going to have a very messy rush hour with elevated times," IDOT spokeswoman Carson Quinn said. "It is going to be a very snowy commute with slick conditions."
Quinn said drivers should exercise caution and give snow plows space to do their work.
"The timing of the storm during rush hour will likely require some additional time for crews to do their jobs," she said. "We will start with the expressways. Watch for black ice and drifting snow."
A weather-related accident involving two semi-trucks temporarily shut down West bound I-74 at the two mile marker near Danville.
The two trucks were driving side-by-side around 7:35 p.m. when cross-wind and black ice on the roadway caused them to hit each other and jackknife, according to Indiana State Police Trooper Nathan Hampton. One of the drivers was transported to the hospital, and the severity of his injuries were unknown.
One semi truck rested in the roadway and was later removed. The other rested in a ditch and will be removed with the road conditions clear up, Hampton said.
Illinois State Police officials said there have been dozens of fender benders on the roadways but as of 8:30 p.m. there were no serious accidents.
Near Champaign, a GMC pickup truck lost control and rolled off of an icy roadway on I-57 northbound near milepost 247 this afternoon around 4:45 p.m., according to Illinois State Police District 10.
The driver, a 40-year-old male from Fort Wayne, Ind., told police that a semi truck in an adjacent lane swerved into his lane, which caused him to swerve, run off the roadway into a ditch and overturn, according to the release.
The man's truck rested in an upright position, and after firefighters extricated the man from the truck, he was transported to the hospital for observation.
At O'Hare, as of 8:30 p.m., delays were about two hours long and 465 flights were canceled, according to the Chicago Department of Aviation. At Midway Airport, 110 flights were canceled and delays were more than two hours long.
As much as 3 inches of snow is expected before the storm passes around 9 p.m., whipped up by winds gusting at 45 mph that will drive wind chills to 20-25 degrees below freezing.
The snow may end Thursday night but the deep freeze will continue Friday, with highs 3 to 7 above zero and wind chills down to 25 below. The high may reach 16 on Saturday and creep into the 20s on Sunday, according to the weather service.
On Thursday, hundreds of schools remained closed as dangerous wind chills ripped through the Chicago area for the fourth straight day.
The lowest temperature overnight was minus 11 in West Chicago, with readings of minus 10 in Winfield, Island Lake, Harvard, Tinley Park, Wheaton and Plainfield. The worst wind chills were minus 30 in Buffalo Grove, minus 30 in Valparaiso, minus 30 in Harvard, minus 28 in Gary, minus 28 in Plainfield, minus 28 in Streamwood and minus 28 in Roselle.
The lowest it got at O'Hare International Airport was minus 8, which means we didn't beat the record of minus 11 set in 1942.
The unrelenting cold started to take a toll at Metra and CTA, which reported more problems Thursday than they had earlier in the week.
Chicago Public Schools officials said classes will resume on Friday.
METRA
The agency reported delays of nearly half an hour on the Milwaukee District North, the Burlington Northern Sante Fe, the Metra Electric and the Union Pacific West lines during the morning commute -- all of them blamed on mechanical problems.
On the BNSF line, an Aurora-bound train was stopped in Lisle because of a switching problem, while inbound BNSF trains to Chicago experienced delays, also because of a switching problem.
Signal problems near suburban Harvey caused delays for inbound and outbound University Park trains on Metra's Electric District, according to a service alert. Signal problems also caused delays for inbound and outbound trains on the Milwaukee District North line.
An inbound train was stopped at Wrightwood on the South West line, again because of switching problems.
CTA
A frozen door held up trains on the Red Line between Garfield and 95th Street. Delays were also reported on the northbound Red Line near 87th Street and on the Blue Line at Harlem.
The Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District reported canceled trains and delays up to an hour because of weather conditions.
SCHOOLS
Most school districts across the area, including Chicago Public Schools, chose to cancel classes for a second straight day Thursday because of the dangerous wind chills. You can see the updated list here.
CPS buildings will remain open for children who come to school. The Chicago Park District and Chicago Public Library will also have facilities open for kids and parents, CPS officials said.
Children from the Chicago area can also check out the Shedd Aquarium and the Museum of Science and Industry for free on their day off from school. Navy Pier's Winter Wonderland is also scheduled to be open Thursday through Sunday, and certain YMCA locations are hosting the "School Days Out" program, which features activities for youths.
FORECAST
Forecasters say the biting cold should tame by the weekend, with highs in the 30s by Monday. Following is the forecast from WGN-TV's Chicago Weather Center.
Thursday: Hazardous driving conditions by evening. Near record-low temperatures combined with southwest winds that average 15-25 mph produce dangerous wind chills near minus 30. A period of light snow develops by 4 p.m., continues through the evening rush hour.
Friday: Bitterly cold. Despite sunshine, readings struggle to warm much above 5 degrees. Gusty west winds 15-25 mph produce dangerous wind chills of minus-10 to minus-25 degrees. Indiana/Michigan lake snow showers persist.
Saturday: Bitterly cold at the start but readings slowly moderate as the frigid arctic air gradually departs the area. Sunshine mixes with incoming clouds. Readings steady or slowly rising at night.
Sunday: A mix of sun and clouds, much less wind and far more seasonable temperatures for the first time in a week. Variable winds become westerly 4-12 mph.
Monday: Considerable cloudiness, perhaps a few flurries or even some light snow. Flurries or light snow especially in southern sections, early. Better-organized northeast winds, 7-17 mph, deliver a second day of seasonable chill.
Tuesday: Mostly cloudy skies persist with a second day of easterly winds off Lake Michigan. Some flurries possible at night.
Wednesday: Modestly colder as winds shift more northwesterly, averaging 5-14 mph. Clouds thicken with some flurries or light snow possible late in the day.