Tuesday Weather Update

12:20am Update: Snow continues to fall over most of northern Illinois, with a rain/snow mix over parts of Lee and DeKalb counties.  Going forecast still looks on track for Wednesday.  Expect anywhere from 4 to 8 inches, with locally higher amounts, when the snow is all finished.

11:20pm Update: Light to moderate snow will continue through Wednesday morning.  Many locations have already received an inch or two of snowfall, with an additional 3-5 inches likely by morning.

South of Rockford from near Dixon to Amboy to just south of DeKalb there is more of a rain/snow mix falling as temperatures have warmed to or above freezing (32 degrees).  One of our weather watchers says snow is currently falling in Dixon but 7 miles southeast of town it was all rain.

Roads have quickly become snow covered this evening as the snow has moved back in, with roads remaining snow covered through the commute Wednesday morning.

10:00pm Update: The rain/snow line is moving into Whiteside and Lee counties this evening.  I did receive a report of heavy 'sprinkles' in Franklin Grove, an indication that temperatures are warming above freezing south of Rockford.

 

9:10pm Update: Snow will continue to move in from the southwest over the next hour or two, and continue into the overnight.  The freezing line, rain/snow line, sits right along Interstate 80 Tuesday evening and may lift close to Interstate 88 through Midnight.  This means parts of Lee and DeKalb counties could see more of a rain/snow mix, or just plain rain later tonight.

North of that line precipitation will remain all

snow.  Current forecast looks on track.  I did nudge back the higher snowfall totals further to the north and northwest.  Generally 4"-6" still look on track.






(9:07:15 PM) nwsbot: Local Storm Report by NWS DVN: Milledgeville [Carroll Co, IL] trained spotter reports SNOW of M0.6 INCH at 09:05 PM CST -- so far.

(9:11:29 PM) nwsbot: Local Storm Report by NWS DVN: Freeport [Stephenson Co, IL] trained spotter reports SNOW of M1.0 INCH at 09:09 PM CST -- so far.

7:35pm Update: A little break in some of the light snow this evening for northern and northwest Illinois this evening, but that will begin to fill in later in the evening with the snow moving in from the southwest.

5:20pm Update: Light to, at times, moderate snow continues to fall over northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin.  One of our First Warn Weather watchers in Dixon was already reporting 2 inches of snow since the it started earlier in the afternoon.

As low pressure moves closer to northern Illinois later this evening, there may be a transition back over to a wintry mix across parts of Lee and DeKalb counties, while snow continues to fall to the north.  Higher accumulations will be found to the north and northwest of Rockford with lighter amounts to the southeast.

(5:14:20 PM) nwsbot: Local Storm Report by NWS LOT: Dixon [Lee Co, IL] public reports SNOW of E2.0 INCH at 05:00 PM CST -- snow bagan between 2:30 and 3 pm. report relayed by wtvo rockford.

4:10pm Update: The transition over to snow has started for most across northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin, with minor accumulations beginning to take place.  A heavier band of snow extends from far southern Walworth County in southeast Wisconsin, down through Belvidere and into Dixon.  Moderate snow has been falling within that band with visibility falling under one mile.

2:15pm Update: Beginning to see moderate snow moving into northeast Iowa, as well as into northwest Illinois as of 2pm this afternoon.  Visibility down to 3/4 mile in Dubuque.  Look for the snow to move in by 4pm/5pm, and continuing into the evening and overnight.

Road conditions will continue to deteriorate through the evening.

 (1:36:26 PM) nwsbot: Local Storm Report by NWS LOT: 1 SSE Lindenwood [Ogle Co, IL] public reports FREEZING RAIN of U0.00 INCH at 01:20 PM CST -- report on social media of semi sliding of i-39 between rochelle and rockford.


Winter Storm Warnings remain in effect for Green, Rock and Walworth counties in southern Wisconsin and for Jo Daviess, Stephenson, Winnebago, Boone, Ogle, Lee, Carroll and Whiteside counties in northern Illinois (areas in pink).  A Winter Weather Advisory remains in effect for McHenry, Lee and DeKalb counties.

The dominant precipitation falling Tuesday morning and early afternoon has been freezing drizzle with a few spots of light freezing rain.  This caused caused roads to quickly turn slick, especially untreated roads, and road conditions will remain hazardous throughout the afternoon and

evening.  The onset of snow has been delayed but is still expected to occur late in the afternoon and evening.  Low pressure currently located Missouri will continue to lift northeast through the late afternoon and evening.  Temperatures are already nearing 32 degrees south of Sterling, but remain in the 20s further north.  Freezing drizzle and rain will continue for the next couple of hours area wide with ice accumulations nearing a tenth of an inch from parts of Carroll, Ogle and northern DeKalb counties, northward.  While slightly higher ice accumulations are possible south of that line.

The transition over to snow will begin from southwest/west to east late in the afternoon, mostly likely after 4pm/5pm, and continue into the evening.  This looks to be especially true for areas across southern Wisconsin, far northern and northwest Illinois.  Further south, the wintry mix may last a little longer through the evening.  Accumulating snow still looks likely heading into the overnight and Wednesday morning, with anywhere from 3 to 6 inches falling.

I will continue to update the forecast with respect to ice and snow totals throughout the afternoon and evening, as this is an ever changing event!