Winter storm slams south suburbs with blitz of heavy snowfall
SOUTH HOLLAND, Ill. - It was a white-knuckle drive wherever you went Wednesday in the Chicago area, but it was especially hazardous in the south suburbs.
The snowstorm dumped a high volume of snow in South Holland.
Motorists were stopping at the Love’s Travel Plaza along I-94 to gas up and clear off cars and trucks. There were crashes and spin-outs everywhere.
Ana Bitron works at the Travel Plaza and drove from her home near Midway to get to work.
Ordinarily, it would take 40 minutes. In the 3:30 am snowstorm, it took 90 minutes.
She said, "I can’t see, I can’t see."
Her daughter made her promise to let her know when she arrived safely.
Plow trucks kept moving on roads and parking lots, but the snow continued to cover surfaces.
AAA reminds drivers to be prepared for emergencies: have a full tank of gas, a phone charger, warm clothes, blankets, water and snacks to keep safe if the vehicle becomes disabled or runs off the road.
Richard Barr, the shop manager at Love’s Travel Plaza, said, "We do have 24/7 roadside service assistance. The motorist has to be in a safe location for our employees, that is the one thing. So if there is any ever issues or they need roadside service, they need to be in a safe, designated location for us to perform services. Our employees come in early to help shovel snow off the sidewalks, plow the roads, plow the drive-through, you know, everything of that nature to make sure all the customers that are on the road going to work, doing what they got to do and get what they need to get."
Flossmoor residents spent the day chipping away at the snow-covered sidewalks.
"Started around 8. Looked out the window, was kind of stunned at what we saw," said Jim O’Keefe.
By late afternoon, O’Keefe was outside again.
"And then every few hours, just come out again with the snow blower and shovel and just do a little bit more just so we don’t have to do it all at once," he said.
Nearby, Atukwe Newell was tackling the snow.
"We look out for each other, we help each other, wonderful community," Newell said. "My son is out helping as well. In-between, we are sledding and playing in the snow."
Joliet reached 10.8 inches of snow.
The roads were treacherous and driveways were covered. Some in the afternoon were trying to cash in on the blanket of white.
"We’re going house to house and hoping to get lucky," said shoveler Luis Salinas.
Roadways engineer Joseph Nordman says they are hoping to skip the second round of snow.
"Hopefully it'll be a light dusting and we can just do one more salt job tomorrow and be done. That's you know, fingers crossed, but we'll also deal with what we get," Nordman said.