Science & Nature
Chicago to Get Its First Big ‘Thumping’ of Snow This Year at the Worst Possible Time, Forecasters Say
Snow totals will matter less than the timing of Wednesday’s forecast storm, set to hit during the evening commute, forecasters said. (Patty Wetli / WTTW News)
Chicago is about to get a “good thumping” of snow on Wednesday — its first of the winter — and while the accumulation isn’t expected to reach even half a foot, the timing of the storm will pack a significant punch, according to Gino Izzi, senior meteorologist with the National Weather Service Chicago office.
A dusting of snow on Tuesday morning provided just a taste of what's to come, with a winter weather advisory issued for the Chicago area and much of northern Illinois from 9 a.m. Wednesday to 3 a.m. Thursday.
The worst of the snowfall is predicted to hit Chicago around noon — slightly earlier than previously predicted — and continue at a steady, sometimes heavy rate, for three to five hours, right up into the p.m. commute, Izzi said.
“It’s about as poorly timed as you can imagine,” he said.
(National Weather Service Chicago)
There could be a small burst of snow on the leading edge of the main storm — what Izzi called the “pre-game” — but the main impact will be felt in the late afternoon and early evening.
Total accumulation should be in the 4- to 6-inch range for Chicago, with lake effect snow possibly adding another inch, he said.
(National Weather Service Chicago)
Up until now, winter 2024-25 has been light on the white stuff. Chicago recorded just 2.4 inches of snow in December and 4.6 inches in January.
WTTW News looked at the past 25 years of snow totals for Chicago and found that scant accumulation in one month rarely had any relationship to the next, or the winter overall. One outlier: the winter of 2013-14, which was snowy start to finish and wound up with a whopping 82 inches total.
More common are years like 2000-01, when nearly 31 inches of snow fell in December, and then fewer than 4 inches in January and February combined.
Or 2018-19, when 1.4 inches fell in December and 7.9 inches fell in April. That’s right, April.
This article has been updated.
Contact Patty Wetli: @pattywetli | (773) 509-5623 | [email protected]
