Ice Storm Affects Iroquois County
Winter Storm Warning Winter Storm Warning remains in effect until noon Friday, although snow totals have been revised downward from earlier predictions. Snow totals of 3-6 inches expected north, 1-3 inches in the city, 1 inch I-80 and south, with 1/2 inch or more of ice accumulation south of I-80. Stay with WGFARadio.com and 94.1 and Talk1360 WGFA for forecast updates, travel conditions, closing information, and more.
Schools
Benton Community School Corporation – Closed
North Newton – Closed
South Newton – Closed
St Joseph School – Closed
Beecher – Closed
Zion Lutheran Beecher School – Closed
Zion Lutheran Chebanse – Closed
Clifton Central – Unit 4 – No Power – Closed
Watseka Unit 9 – Closed
Iroquois West – Closed
St Anne High School and Grade School – Closed
Paxton Buckley Loda – Closed
St Johns Lutheran School Buckley – Closed
Milford Public Schools – High School and Grade School -
Donovan – Closed
Crescent Iroquois 249 – Closed
Momence Unit 1 Closed
Bishop Mac Catholic High School – Closed
Cissna Park Schools – Closed
Grant Park Schools – Closed
Tri-Point in Cullom – Closed – No Bus Service from Tri-Point to Pontiac
St Pauls Lutheran in Woodworth – Closed
St Patrick Academy in Momence – Closed
Manteno Schools – Closed
Calvary Pre-school – Closed
KCC – Kankakee Community College and Satellite Locations – Closed
Brice Ash Grove Closed
Herscher CUSD#2 including Bonfield, Herscher Grade/High, Limestone and Reddick are closed Friday, December 19, 2008.
Grace Baptist Acadamey in Kankakee – Closed
Thawville Community Nursery School – Closed
Christ Lutheran School in Buckley – Closed
Maternity BVM – Closed
St. George School – Closed
Sports
Central High School has cancelled for freshman boys basketball 6pm and freshman girls game at 7:15 pm.
Manteno School District 5 has CANCELLED all activities today due to the weather.
St. Anne Grade School Activities Cancelled
Manteno – All Activities Cancelled
Business/Community Events
PLEASE CALL AHEAD TO YOUR LOCATION TO FIND OUT IF IT IS CLOSED BEFORE TRAVELING
Learning Tree Daycare – Closed
Iroquois County Courthouse and Administrative Center
The Toastmaster’s club meeting scheduled for Friday at 7am at IMH has been cancelled.
The Iroquois Regional Health Center will not be open Friday, December 19th for morning exercise in the Rehab Gym due to impending weather. This is only for the exercise program from 6:00am-8:00am.
No Cardiac Rehab at IMH
IMH Clinics – Kentland Closed – No Power – if Power is restored the clinic will be open – Gilman and Milford will be open as long as there is power but may be a bit later due to travel
Ford Iroquois Public Health Department in Watseka ONLY is closed….Paxton is still open
HiPro Manufacturing Has Electricity – Employees who can report should
Iroquois Mental Health Center Closed
Chicago Steel and Tape – Reduced Operations – Do Not Report if there is any difficulty driving
Useful Prodcuts in Goodland IN – Closed
Wells Workshop at the ARC of Iroquois County – Closed
KC-CASA – IQ-SAS Sexuial Assault Services Closed
Ford Iroquois Extension Office – Closed
Kankakee Valley OBGYN – Closed
Watseka Show Bus – Very Limited Service
Chicago Tribune and Sun Times Delivery – Behind Schedule
Coils Inc. in Kentland – Closed
Northeastern IL Railway in Iroquois -
Morocco, Goodland, and Generations at Roselawn Nutrition Sites Closed Today
Vierks Tire Service in Watseka Closed
Curves
Peace Meals in Cissna Park – Cancelled
Watseka Public Library – Closed
Slip Into Style Watseka – Closed
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Power Outages
Trees and Power Lines reported on houses in Watsea – Use Extreme Caution
Power Out North of Kentland on Rt 41
EIEC Linemen and employees are doing everything they can to get things repaired quickly, however, please be prepared to be without power for quite a while as the 4000 + miles of EIEC power lines have many snapped poles and downed lines. For more visit http://www.EIEC.coop
No Power near Earl Park – Power out on NIPSCo circuit covering north Fowler and Earl Park area at 0345 ET, and continuing. Rainfall passed 1″ at 0400 in Earl Park. Period sof moderately heavy rain continues.. Ice accumulation of .4 – .5″. though it appears that it is not building at this time. There has been thunderstorms in this area during the past hour. http://www.nipsco.com/
1/2 ” ice Bruce Sanders in Chatsworth – branches and wires down too
No Power Watseka
No Power at Iroquois Mobile Home
No Electricity East Side Sheldon – Several Limbs Down
Onarga
THE MESSY MORNING COMMUTE
A sloppy mix of snow, ice and freezing rain hit northern Illinois late Thursday, sending motorists skidding into lightpoles, sliding into ditches and spinning off highway ramps.
A National Weather Service winter storm warning ends at noon today, and the Illinois Department of Transportation reported all Chicago expressways were snow and ice-covered as of 4:30 a.m., with extended travel times.
Hundreds of schools in the metropolitan area have canceled classes today and the number was growing.
As of 6 a.m., Commonwealth Edison was reporting 14,000 customers without power, most of them in the southern part of the metropolitan area. Northern Indiana Public Service Co. reported 28,000 without power in Northwest Indiana, with Hammond and Crown Point among the hardest-hit areas.
By the time today’s storm ends, as much as 10 inches of snow will have fallen from Waukegan north to the Wisconsin line, according to the weather service. South of Waukegan, 6 inches are expected, and 2 to 4 inches along the Interstate Highway 80 corridor. South of I-80, freezing rain is forecast to mix with sleet and snow to form a half inch or more of ice.
The sleet and freezing rain, sometimes mixed with snow, will change to all snow between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m., the weather service said, and end by late morning.
The pace of traffic accidents was picking up as the morning wore on.
The Illinois State Police reported numerous crashes on area expressways since the storm hit around midnight and advised motorists to drive with caution and slow down.
The heavy snow in Northern Illinois and the ice in Central Illinois are posing a challenge for highway crews.
The Illinois Department of Transportation is responsible for plowing 43,000 lane-miles with more than 1,800 trucks. Exactly what they do depends on what the weather does, says Christine Reed, IDOT’s director of highways. She says light snow (by weight) is handled differently than heavy snow; snow with wind must be removed differently than snow without wind.
Despite the efforts of IDOT and county and city crews, roads are still dangerous during and right after a snowstorm or ice storm. State police advise drivers to be careful with accelerating and braking, and to beware of ice on bridges, off-ramps and in shady spots.
IDOT spent $85 million on snow and ice removal last winter, and is trying to spend less this winter, but Reed promises to keep roads safe.
Ice Storm Warning
An Ice Storm Warning remains in effect until noon CST /1 PM EST/ today.
A mix of rain…freezing rain…and sleet will continue early this morning before changing over to snow after 9 am. Total ice accumulations in excess of a half inch are expected by mid morning from the Kankakee and Illinois River valleys southward. Total snow accumulations of an inch or two are possible. Isolated thunderstorms are also possible with the freezing rain…which will result in rapid ice accumulation. Precipitation is expected to change to a period of snow before ending by late morning.
An Ice Storm Warning means severe winter weather conditions are expected or occurring. Significant amounts of ice accumulation will make travel dangerous or impossible. Travel is strongly discouraged. Ice accumulations and wind will likely lead to falling tree branches…snapped power lines and the possibility of extended power outages.
This could become a dangerous situation with extremely hazardous travel and power outages. Please take precautions and stay safe!
FREEZING RAIN ADVISORY
A Freezing Rain Advisory remains in effect until noon CST today.
Freezing rain has diminish across the area early this morning.
Ice accumulations have remained at less than on quarter of an inch across the area. Temperatures have climbed to near freezing and should continue to rise through the morning. However…it could still take several hours for all the ice to melt and roadways to become free of ice and snow…so motorists should remain cautious.
A Freezing Rain Advisory means that periods of freezing rain or freezing drizzle will cause travel difficulties. Be prepared for slippery roads. Slow down and use caution while driving.
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