The Chicago area was reeling after a veritable smorgasbord of winter weather blasted the region Saturday night with every type of winter precipitation imaginable. Snow was predominate in the northern suburbs, while areas to the south vacillated between freezing rain, sleet and snow. Thunder and lightning accompanied the precipitation early Saturday evening with reports of thundersnow across a broad area from Palatine to DeKalb, and from Aurora to Joliet. The southern suburbs also received considerable freezing rain with more than a half inch of ice wreaking havoc with trees and power lines while making travel treacherous.
Saturday evening’s onslaught was but the opening round of a late winter storm that is expected to last into Monday. As colder air wraps into the system, the precipitation should change to all snow during Sunday, continuing in waves of varying intensity into Monday before ending.
--By Steve Kahn, WGN Weather Center Meteorologist
