A BLIZZARD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 3 PM THIS AFTERNOON TO
3 PM CST WEDNESDAY.

* TIMING...ACCUMULATING SNOW WILL DEVELOP AROUND THE INTERSTATE
80 CORRIDOR DURING THE EARLY TO MID AFTERNOON...SPREADING
NORTH TO THE WISCONSIN STATE LINE BY MID TO LATE AFTERNOON.
THE MOST SIGNIFICANT SNOW MAY COME IN A COUPLE OF WAVES...WITH
THE FIRST WAVE LATE THIS AFTERNOON INTO EARLY THIS EVENING...
FOLLOWED BY A SECOND WAVE OF INTENSE SNOW LATER THIS EVENING
INTO THE OVERNIGHT. ACCUMULATING LAKE EFFECT SNOW SHOWERS WILL
CONTINUE OVER NORTHEAST ILLINOIS WEDNESDAY MORNING...SPREADING
INTO NORTHWEST INDIANA WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON.

* ACCUMULATIONS...SNOW WILL BE HEAVY AT TIMES WITH ACCUMULATION
RATES LIKELY REACHING OR EXCEEDING 1 TO 2 INCHES PER HOUR. STORM
TOTAL SNOWFALL OF 10 TO 18 INCHES IS LIKELY TOWARD ROCKFORD AND
DIXON. THE HEAVIEST SNOWFALL TOTALS ARE LIKELY DOWNWIND OF LAKE
MICHIGAN IN THE CHICAGO METROPOLITAN AREA INTO NORTHWEST INDIANA
WHERE 12 TO 20 INCHES OF SNOW IS LIKELY...WITH POSSIBLE
LOCALIZED TOTALS UP TO TWO FEET.

* WINDS...NORTHEAST WINDS WILL INCREASE TO 20 TO 35 MPH BY LATE
THIS AFTERNOON. WIND GUSTS UP TO 40 MPH WILL BE POSSIBLE BY
EVENING WITH GUSTS OF 40 TO 50 MPH LIKELY TONIGHT. EVEN
STRONGER WINDS ARE LIKELY NEAR THE IMMEDIATE LAKE SHORE WITH
SUSTAINED WINDS OF 30 TO 40 MPH WITH GUSTS BETWEEN 50 AND 60
MPH.

* BLIZZARD CONDITIONS...THE STRONG WINDS ALONG WITH BLOWING AND
OCCASIONALLY HEAVY FALLING SNOW WILL REDUCE VISIBILITIES TO
NEAR ZERO AT TIMES.

* THUNDERSTORMS...ISOLATED SNOW-PRODUCING THUNDERSTORMS ARE
EXPECTED TO DEVELOP TONIGHT...RESULTING IN LOCALIZED INTENSE
SNOWFALL RATES. IT IS NOT UNCOMMON FOR SNOWFALL RATES TO EXCEED
4 INCHES PER HOUR IN THUNDER SNOW MAKING TRAVEL NEARLY
IMPOSSIBLE.

* TRAVEL...ROAD CONDITIONS WILL RAPIDLY DETERIORATE DURING THE MID
TO LATE AFTERNOON AS SNOW DEVELOPS FROM SOUTH TO NORTH ACROSS
THE AREA. TRAVEL IS EXPECTED TO BECOME TREACHEROUS BY LATE
AFTERNOON...AND DOWNRIGHT DANGEROUS BY EARLY EVENING AS WINDS
INCREASE RESULTING IN WHITE OUT CONDITIONS. SNOWFALL RATES WILL
BE SO INTENSE AT TIMES THAT ROAD CREWS MAY BE UNABLE TO KEEP PRIMARY
ROADS AND HIGHWAYS CLEARED. UNNECESSARY TRAVEL SHOULD BE AVOIDED
AT ALL COSTS THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH EARLY WEDNESDAY MORNING AS
MORE THAN HALF OF THE FATALITIES IN PREVIOUS ILLINOIS BLIZZARDS
HAVE OCCURRED AS A RESULT OF TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS. BEFORE MAKING
THE DECISION TO TRAVEL...CONSIDER IF GETTING TO YOUR DESTINATION
IS WORTH PUTTING YOUR LIFE AT RISK.

* POWER OUTAGES...THE COMBINATION OF STRONG AND GUSTY WINDS
ALONG WITH POSSIBLY HEAVY WET SNOW STICKING TO POWER LINES
COULD RESULT IN POWER OUTAGES. DUE TO THE PROLONGED NATURE OF
VERY ADVERSE CONDITIONS...PLAN ACCORDINGLY FOR THE POSSIBILITY
OF A PROLONGED DISRUPTION IN COMMERCIAL POWER.

* OTHER IMPACTS...THE HEAVY NATURE OF THE SNOW WILL MAKE
SHOVELING VERY DIFFICULT...AND POTENTIALLY DEADLY. DURING AND
IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING THE BLIZZARD OF 1999 OVER 40 PEOPLE IN
THE CHICAGO AREA ALONE LOST THEIR LIVES TO HEART ATTACKS WHILE
SHOVELING THE HEAVY SNOWFALL. TAKE FREQUENT BREAKS INDOORS AND
DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE TASK AT HAND WHEN SHOVELING.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A BLIZZARD WARNING MEANS SEVERE WINTER WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE
EXPECTED OR OCCURRING. FALLING AND BLOWING SNOW WITH STRONG WINDS
AND POOR VISIBILITIES ARE LIKELY. THIS WILL LEAD TO WHITEOUT
CONDITIONS...MAKING TRAVEL EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. DO NOT TRAVEL! IF
YOU ABSOLUTELY MUST TRAVEL...HAVE A WINTER SURVIVAL KIT WITH YOU.
IF YOU GET STRANDED...STAY WITH YOUR VEHICLE.