CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- A winter storm is expected to kick up near blizzard conditions in central Illinois Thursday and could drop up to four inches of snow in the Chicago area.
Heavy overnight rains and scattered freezing drizzle slickened roads for the morning commute. The snow is expected to hit around noon, according to the National Weather Service, which warned of hazardous conditions for the evening rush hour, with temperatures dropping into the teens and winds gusting to 35 mph.
A band of heavy snow was expected to sweep from eastern Kansas into central Missouri early Thursday, then move into central Illinois and northern Indiana by the afternoon, the weather service said.

The snow will be the heaviest south of Interstate 80, with “near blizzard conditions possible south of a Pontiac, Illinois to Valparaiso Indiana line,” the weather service said.
Friday was expected to be sunny with a high near 32.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire & Chicago Sun-Times 2022. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)