Season becomes 2nd snowiest in 3 decades

Chicagoans dodged a bullet Friday evening. Snows, which had slashed visibilities to a
quarter mile for several hours of the morning rush -- depositing as much as 3 to 5 inches
across the northwest and north suburbs and 1 to 3 inches in the city -- paused much of
the afternoon, sparing the critical evening commute period. But by late Friday,
intensifying snowfall had visibilities in free fall, covering roads with snow as the second major
wave of snowfall in the latest storm hit. A burgeoning corridor of heavy snow extended from
Iowa across northern Illinois, featuring visibilities as low as a quarter mile --
indicating heavy snowfall.
LENGTHY FRIDAY/SATURDAY STORM
THE BIGGEST SNOW-PRODUCER YET
The final snow totals in this storm are expected to breeze by the 4.8-inch O'Hare
Airport tally recorded Dec. 16, which had been Chicago's heaviest snow this season.
Snowfall this season has been historic. The 26.5 inches on the books late Friday ranks
as the heaviest tally at this point in a snow season since 2000-01 -- and the only total
as heavy by Jan. 10 since 1980.
Another potentially significant snow could reach the area Tuesday night.
--Tom Skilling, Chief Meteorologist, WGN-TV/Chicago Tribune