A record snowfall for April 11 of 3.0 inches beat a 1957 record of 2.3 inches. But it wasn’t the depth that caused the trouble … it was the extreme wetness and weight of the snow and the winds that gave it an almost horizontal impact. Yesterday’s low (33F) didn’t even reach freezing, but the dew point was 31F and the high moisture brought the snow on with a wet vengeance. Winds were in the 20 to 30 mph range from about 1:30 a.m. until about 10:00 a.m. Maximum sustained wind was 26 mph and the maximum gust recorded was 38 mph. The snow packed on stoplights, making it impossible for drivers to see if they had a red or a green light at some intersections. In Buffalo Grove people called to ask that the stoplights be cleared.
A twin-engine plane with 5 people aboard slid off a runway at Chicago Executive Airport (formerly known as Palwaukee Municipal Airport). The trouble was actually caused by an engine surge that resulted in an aborted takeoff by the pilot, but the weather then caused the plane to slide off the runway as the plane was coming to a stop. The airport was closed for about 3 hours during cleanup. No injuries reported.
Here’s a list of some more of the trouble from yesterday’s storm:
Numerous automobile spinouts
Multiple accidents on Route 53
Large trees downed
Whiteout conditions
If your joints were a little achy, the barometer dropped from about 29.9 inches at midnight to about 29.3 inches at 5:30 p.m. yesterday.
The snow should be on a continuous melt, except for lows in the 20’s tonight (Thursday night) and lows in the low 30’s Saturday night.
You can always get snow information at Arlingtoncards.com/snow
… and weather forecasts at Arlingtoncards.com/weather