Model issued Monday morning for snow accumulation from 6:00 a.m. Tuesday March 5, 2013 thru 6:00 a.m. Wednesday March 6, 2013 (HPC Winter Weather Desk).
The Cardinal is forecasting snow accumulation of 9.0 inches by Wednesday morning at 6:00 a.m. in Arlington Heights. The City of Chicago may see 9-10 inches accumulation. An experimental weather model (HPC Winter Weather Desk) has produced a guidance map Monday that shows a 75 percent chance that Chicago, west suburbs, northwest suburbs and north suburbs will get hit with a snow accumulation of 6-8 inches by Wednesday morning. There’s a 50 percent confidence in the model of 8-10 inches. Arlington Heights is on the margin of the 8-10 inch zone and Chicago is in a direct hit zone for 8-10 inches. The greatest snowfall rate is expected to occur between 3 a.m. Tuesday and 11:00 p.m. Tuesday after about one-half inch of snow falls from about 12 noon Monday until 3:00 a.m. Tuesday. Air temperature is expected to be about 30-32°F for most of the snow period.
The forecast trend for the winter snow storm during the last 24 hours has involved an earlier arrival of the heavy snow and an expanded time period of heavy snow fall.
URGENT – WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHICAGO IL
406 AM CST MON MAR 4 2013
…WINTER STORM WITH HEAVY SNOWFALL LATE TONIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY
EVENING…
MCHENRY-LAKE IL-KANE-DUPAGE-COOK-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF…WOODSTOCK…WAUKEGAN…AURORA…
WHEATON…CHICAGO
406 AM CST MON MAR 4 2013
…WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 3 AM TUESDAY TO MIDNIGHT
CST TUESDAY NIGHT…
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CHICAGO HAS ISSUED A WINTER STORM
WARNING FOR HEAVY SNOW…WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 3 AM TUESDAY TO
MIDNIGHT CST TUESDAY NIGHT. THE WINTER STORM WATCH IS NO LONGER IN
EFFECT.
* TIMING…LIGHT SNOW IS IS EXPECTED TO SPREAD ACROSS NORTHEAST
ILLINOIS TONIGHT AND BECOME MORE INTENSE TOWARD DAYBREAK TUESDAY
AND PERSIST THROUGH TUESDAY EVENING.
* SNOW ACCUMULATION…6 TO 9 INCHES WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS
POSSIBLE.
* OTHER IMPACTS…SNOW WILL LIKELY FALL HEAVILY AT TIMES FROM LATE
TUESDAY MORNING THROUGH EARLY TUESDAY EVENING. ACCUMULATION
RATES OF 1 TO 1.5 INCHES PER HOUR ARE POSSIBLE AT TIMES MAKING
SNOW REMOVAL DIFFICULT AND TRAVEL EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. THIS WILL
IMPACT BOTH RUSH HOURS ON TUESDAY…WITH THE HIGHER POTENTIAL
FOR HEAVY SNOWFALL DURING THE LATE AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING
RUSH HOUR.
* OTHER IMPACTS…NORTHERLY WINDS GUSTING TO 25 TO 30 MPH AT TIMES
LATER TUESDAY INTO TUESDAY NIGHT MAY CAUSE BLOWING SNOW IN OPEN
AREAS.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…
A WINTER STORM WARNING FOR HEAVY SNOW MEANS SEVERE WINTER WEATHER
CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED. SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS OF SNOW ARE FORECAST
THAT WILL MAKE TRAVEL DANGEROUS. CONSIDER ONLY TRAVELING IF IN AN
EMERGENCY. IF YOU MUST TRAVEL…KEEP AN EXTRA FLASHLIGHT…
FOOD…AND WATER IN YOUR VEHICLE IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY.
CHICAGO HAS ISSUED A WINTER STORM
WATCH…WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM LATE MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY
EVENING.
* TIMING…LIGHT SNOW IS IS EXPECTED TO SPREAD ACROSS NORTHEAST
ILLINOIS AND NORTHWEST INDIANA MONDAY NIGHT AND BECOME MORE
INTENSE TUESDAY MORNING AND TUESDAY AFTERNOON.
* SNOW ACCUMULATION…IN EXCESS OF 6 INCHES POSSIBLE.
* OTHER IMPACTS…SNOW MAY FALL HEAVILY AT TIMES FROM TUESDAY
MORNING THROUGH TUESDAY AFTERNOON. ACCUMULATION RATES OF 1 TO
1.5 INCHES PER HOUR ARE POSSIBLE AT TIMES MAKING SNOW REMOVAL
DIFFICULT AND TRAVEL EXTREMELY DANGEROUS.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…
A WINTER STORM WATCH MEANS THERE IS A POTENTIAL FOR SIGNIFICANT
SNOW…SLEET…OR ICE ACCUMULATIONS THAT MAY IMPACT TRAVEL.
CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE LATEST FORECASTS.
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