Title: Winter Storm Batters Midwest: Illinois Under Winter Weather Advisory, Schools Close
A powerful winter storm swept across the Midwest, leaving a trail of snow, ice, power outages, and travel disruptions. Illinois was one of the hardest hit states, with the northeastern region under a winter weather advisory due to lake effect snow expected on Monday.
In southern Illinois, Washington County was under a shelter-in-place order after the severe winter storm brought "potentially life-threatening conditions" with snow, ice, power outages, and significant travel impacts, including spinouts and crashes.
According to the Washington County Emergency Management Agency, the shelter-in-place order was issued just before 5 a.m. on Monday. The duration of the order was not immediately known.
Monday morning saw the Washington County Sheriff’s Office warning NBC Chicago that driving conditions were dangerous, stating that "the main roads are all terrible."
"It’s been quite challenging," the agency posted on Facebook. "First responders have been running all night."
Thousands of customers in the area were also left without power, with Tri-County Electric Cooperative and Ameren reporting over 20,000 outages, according to outage maps.
On Sunday, the Illinois State Police’s Troop Six announced that its snow emergency plan was activated due to the winter weather. Monday saw multiple crashes and spinouts in Lincoln, with maps and cameras showing snow and ice covering roads.
In the Chicago area, O’Hare International Airport implemented a ground stop for departures due to winter weather, with over 100 flights canceled. The ground stop was in effect until at least 9:30 a.m., according to the FAA.
Regional Impact
The winter storm wasn’t confined to Illinois. Snow and ice covered major roads in Kansas, western Nebraska, and parts of Indiana, where the state National Guard was deployed to assist stranded motorists. Nearly 300,000 customers were without power Monday morning in Kentucky, Indiana, Virginia, West Virginia, Illinois, and Missouri, according to poweroutage.us.
Kansas and Missouri were under winter storm warnings, with blizzard conditions expected to bring wind gusts of up to 45 mph. Warnings extended to New Jersey into Monday night and Tuesday morning.
"For locations in this region receiving the heaviest snow, this could be the most intense snowstorm in at least a decade," the weather service said.
Over the weekend, at least 600 motorists were stranded in Missouri, authorities said. Hundreds of car crashes were reported in Virginia, Indiana, Kansas, and Kentucky, where a state police officer was treated for non-life-threatening injuries after his patrol car was struck.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, who declared a state of emergency, said state government buildings would be closed on Monday. "We’re seeing too many accidents with folks that don’t need to be on the road, so we’re asking you: stay inside," Beshear said.
In Indiana, snow covered parts of I-64, I-69, and U.S. Route 41, leading the Indiana State Police to urge motorists to stay off the roads while snow plows worked to keep up.
Topeka, Kansas, reported 14.5 inches (36.8 cm) of snow around 8 p.m. Sunday, according to the weather service. Kansas City International Airport received a record 11 inches (28 cm) of snow on Sunday, breaking the previous record of 10.1 inches (26 cm) set in 1962. In Kentucky, Louisville recorded 7.6 inches (19.3 cm) of snow on Sunday, breaking the previous record of 5.1 inches (13 cm) set in 1884.
School Closures
While Chicago saw lake effect snow and a winter weather advisory, schools in northeastern Illinois remained open Monday, according to the Emergency School Closure Center.
However, widespread closures were expected elsewhere. Districts in Indiana, Virginia, Kentucky, Missouri, and Kansas began announcing cancellations and delays on Sunday afternoon. Kentucky’s Jefferson County Public Schools canceled classes, extracurricular activities, and athletics for its nearly 100,000 students.
Classes were also canceled in Maryland, where Governor Wes Moore declared a state of emergency and announced that state government would be closed on Monday.
Chicago Snowfall
Parts of Chicago saw freezing drizzle and ice Monday morning, while others saw lake effect snow, with more expected in Lake County, Illinois, and Kenosha County, Wisconsin.
According to NBC 5 Meteorologist Alicia Roman, the snow band could strengthen in some areas Monday morning. "Lake effect makes the weather very changeable, from locally intense snow bands to dry conditions just a few miles away. Visibility can also vary greatly. Be prepared for rapid weather and visibility changes," NWS warned.
Monday afternoon, snow was expected to hit mainly the central and southern Cook County, Roman said, before shifting northwest into Indiana Monday evening.
Monday night, snow was expected to move into Lake and Porter counties in Indiana, Roman said. Up to four inches of snow were possible in some areas, Roman said.
Temperatures were expected to remain cold, with highs in the low 20s on Monday and throughout the week, Roman added.
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