...DANGEROUS MULTIFACETED AND LIFE THREATENING WINTER STORM TO
BEGIN THIS AFTERNOON...
...FINAL PREPARATIONS PRIOR TO THE STORM SHOULD BE COMPLETED THIS
MORNING...

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 OF 1 TO 2 INCHES PER HOUR LIKELY. 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 ISOLATED AMOUNTS OF AROUND 2
FEET POSSIBLE.

* 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 LAKESHORE 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...PARTICULARLY TONIGHT.

* THUNDERSTORMS...ISOLATED SNOW PRODUCING THUNDERSTORMS ARE
EXPECTED TO DEVELOP TONIGHT...RESULTING IN LOCALLY VERY INTENSE
SNOWFALL RATES. IT IS NOT UNCOMMON TO SEE SNOWFALL RATES IN
EXCESS OF 4 INCHES PER HOUR IN THUNDERSNOW 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 WILL BE UNABLE TO KEEP
EVEN 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 POWERLINES 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
EXTREMELY 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. IF YOU MUST SHOVEL THE SNOW...TAKE
FREQUENT BREAKS INDOORS AND DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE TASK AT
HAND.

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.