Snow piles up beyond expected amounts in Wisconsin, IL

This storm has already produced on the order of 8 to 16 inches of snow in a band from southeastern South Dakota to southern Wisconsin. Periods of heavy snow will reduce visibility and freezing conditions will make wet and snow-covered roads slippery. The metro dipped to 16 degrees, but Spencer IA in the northwest corner of the state had a fresh 10 inches of snow.

“People need to be prepared for that”. Snow will then expand across the rest of the region in the early afternoon and may become heavy at times late in the day.

According to National Weather Service data, Chicago hasn’t seen a November with 6 inches or more of snow since 1978, much less 6 inches of snow in one November storm.

Flight-tracking website FlightAware.com showed more 300 flights in and out of O’Hare global Airport had been canceled as of Saturday evening.

“Lows will be in the single digits in the western suburbs”, National Weather Service Meteorologist Amy Seeley said. The storm crawled northeastward through IN and MI by noon, and it is expected to reach Canada later IN the day, experts said.

The northern IN city of LaPorte is no stranger to heavy snowfalls.

Crews at Montini High School work to remove snow from the field before the Class 6A semifinal high school football game against Prairie Ridge in Lombard, Ill.

The snow is expected to taper off sometime Saturday night, but the Chicago-area may see below-zero windchills on Sunday.

In five previous strong El Niño seasons (1997-98, 1982-83, 1972-73, 1965-66, 1957-58), Chicago has picked up an average of only 23 inches of seasonal snow, which is 15.4 inches below the 1950-2015 average of 38.4 inches.

Parts of the Sioux City, South Dakota metro area picked up over a foot of snow in an intense snowband Friday. The Weather Channel reported eighteen inches in Tea, South Dakota, nearly thirteen inches in Waterloo, Iowa, seventeen inches in Footville, Wisconsin, and nearly fifteen inches in Capron, Illionois. This, along with warmer ground temperatures, can keep the nights from getting too cold.