Wind chill advisory for Sauk Valley through Wednesday

DIXON – Following two snowstorms and high winds over the past week, northern Illinois will continue to face dangerous wind chills over the next few days.

Lee, Ogle, Winnebago, Boone, DeKalb, Kane, La Salle, Kendall, Grundy and Will counties are under a wind chill warning until noon Monday, and then will be under a wind chill advisory from noon Monday to 9 a.m. Wednesday.

According to the National Weather Service, the wind chill temperature in Sterling was minus 42 degrees Sunday. Joliet’s was minus 30, Rochelle was at minus 36 and Peru recorded a wind chill of minus 39.

Dangerously cold wind chills, which could be anywhere from minus 30 to minus 35 degrees, could cause frostbite on exposed skin in as little as 15 to 30 minutes, according to the NWS.

Lee County emergency management officials on Sunday were warning drivers that if they have to travel to make sure they were prepared to be in their vehicle for several hours. That directive, which the office posted on its Facebook page, came as snowplows were having difficulty removing snow from roads because of drifts and stranded and abandoned vehicles. First responders would be unable to get to vehicles because of impassable roads, emergency management officials warned.

“They are using the same type of vehicle to rescue you as you are using to travel,” the post reads.

As plows were getting the roads open, towing companies were being contacted to have vehicles removed. The sheriff’s office said drivers who have abandoned their vehicles and have not yet reported it are to call the department’s nonemergency number at 815-284-6631.

The dangerously cold temperatures follow a strong double-barreled, low pressure system that brought two waves of accumulating snow to the region, beginning early Friday, Jan. 12, through late morning, then again that evening through early Saturday, Jan. 13, according to the NWS.

The highest snowfall totals of more than a foot of snow were observed toward the Illinois-Wisconsin state line in portions of Boone, McHenry and Lake counties. Many areas along/north of Interstate 80 received more than 6 inches of snow. A notable gradient in amounts occurred near Lake Michigan because of relatively mild lake temperatures still in the upper 30s to 40, according to the NWS.