A late-season winter storm prompted a blizzard warning and a wave of school cancellations across northern Illinois for Monday, March 16, as forecasters warned of dangerous travel conditions overnight.

The National Weather Service issued a Blizzard Warning for DeKalb County and McHenry County from 10 p.m. Sunday until 1 p.m. Monday, urging residents to avoid travel unless absolutely necessary. Forecasters warned that falling and blowing snow combined with strong winds could produce whiteout conditions and extremely hazardous roads. Behind the storm, temperatures are expected to struggle to reach the low 20s Monday, with wind chills potentially dropping to 5 to 10 below zero Monday night into Tuesday morning.

The dangerous forecast triggered school closings across the region. All DeKalb County schools, including Northern Illinois University, canceled or moved classes online for Monday. In McHenry County, many districts called off school or shifted to e-learning, including Crystal Lake District 47, McHenry District 15, Woodstock District 200, Huntley District 158, and many others. For a full list of McHenry County closings, see the Northwest Herald’s list here.

Across the Sauk Valley, schools including Dixon, Morrison, Rochelle, Erie, Dakota, and Amboy announced closures, while others such as Oregon, Polo, and Rock Falls opted for virtual learning days. The full Sauk Valley closings list is available here.

A Winter Weather Advisory was also in effect for surrounding counties, including La Salle, Kane, DuPage, and Kendall, where 1 to 4 inches of snow and wind gusts up to 45 mph were expected to create slick road conditions.

Officials asked residents across the area to stay off roads overnight and into Monday morning. For the full details on the blizzard warning and forecast, read the complete weather story here.