Kane readies for winter blast – in time for Christmas

As the song goes, “Oh the weather outside is frightful” – and that seems to be what meteorologists are predicting for the lead-in to Christmas weekend.

The winter storm watch has been moved up for most northern Illinois counties to 9 a.m. Thursday through 6 a.m. Saturday, according to the National Weather Service, as more details come into focus as the storm approaches.

The watch affects Winnebago, Boone, McHenry, Ogle, Lee, DeKalb, Kane, La Salle, Kendall, Grundy and Livingston counties.

It cautions that blizzard conditions are predicted with wind gusts as high as 55 miles an hour, making travel dangerous with white-out conditions, coupled with wind chills of 25 to 30 below zero.

“Travel conditions will be pretty ugly Thursday afternoon through Friday,” said Brett Borchardt, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Romeoville. “Anytime we have falling show, strong winds and falling temperatures – the combination of those three things are going to make this storm nasty.”

Though the snow may be tapering by Friday, wind chills and blowing snow across the farmlands and rural areas of Kane County make result in zero visibility for at least 24 hours, Borchardt said.

And while the two-foot snow dump of Groundhog Day 2011 is not expected, Borchardt said drifting snow may pile up against doors and garage doors, while temperatures are expected to be 20 to 30 degrees below zero.

“Stay home if you can,” Borchardt said. “Look at changing travel plans, shifting to leaving earlier or riding out the storm at home. … It’s not going to be pretty out there.”

He also cautioned that people should be careful with their pets during high winds and plunging temperatures.

“Pets are part of the family as well,” Borchardt said. “Make sure your pet is bundled up if you can.”

Local public works departments and road crews are ready for the worst, such as in Campton Township.

“The plows are all set. The guys are hunkering down Thursday night and all day Friday, Friday night into Saturday,” said Highway Commissioner Sam Gallucci. “We have 10 guys. We have 137 miles of roadway in Campton Township, Plato Township and Campton Hills. Nobody is going home.”

Gallucci said if the forecast is correct, he expects Friday to be brutally cold with wind gusts blowing and drifting snow across the area’s open roads.

“It’s 90 days till spring,” Gallucci said. “That’s what we look forward to.”

Similarly, Batavia Public Works Director Gary Holm is preparing crews for non-stop 24-hour operations.

“The snow is supposed to stop late Friday or early Saturday morning. We’ll see how long we have to keep going into Saturday,” Holm said. “We’ll have all our hands on deck. The story of this storm is not snow totals, but blowing winds, cold temperatures and blizzard conditions.”

Sugar Grove Public Works Director Tony Speciale said they are ready for whatever comes.

“We’ve got our trucks loaded, fueled up, pre-tripped where we check all the equipment to make sure it’s ready to roll out the door at the time it’s needed,” Speciale said. “The salt bins are full, all ready to go.”

Speciale also warned about the wind, which he said would be their biggest problem.

“Sometimes it does not matter – the amount of snow,” Speciale said. “But when the wind is 50-some miles an hour, they call it a blizzard warning.”

St. Charles Public Works Manager AJ Reineking said they are prepared for the weather “the same way we do for anything – getting all the trucks inspected and making sure everything is operational.”

“The drivers are ready and available for a 24\7 operation until the job is done,” Reineking said. “Our salt bins are full, the trucks are fueled and we are ready for a sustained operation.”

Maria Castaneda, spokeswoman for the Illinois Department of Transportation, said they prepare for weather like this all year.

“We are prepared. We have salt. We have a labor force and trucks ready to go,” Castaneda said. “We are monitoring the forecast. The storm is all over the board right now.”

The department is asking the public to look at their schedules and adapt it to avoid the worst of the storm, she said.

“Can you leave one day early? Run errands now? If the forecast comes true, there will be substantial snow Thursday and Friday. You want to avoid driving during the height of the snowstorm,” Castaneda said.

Even with a small amount of snow, if winds are 55 miles an hour, blowing snow will make visibility challenging for motorists – as well as the risk of sliding on ice, Castaneda said.

“We’re not telling people not to go to grandma’s for Christmas,” Castaneda said. “But be prepared to go slower than you need to go and give yourself more time to get there.”

Motorists should dress warmly, have their gas tanks full, their cars complete with blankets and cell phones, to be aware of their routes and remember how to drive in the snow.

“Our Minute Men are out on expressways to help if a driver needs help – but we don’t want that to happen,” she said. “We want you get where you’re going safely.”