Naperville braces for strong winds and sub-zero temps after first winter storm dumps holiday snow
The city of Naperville’s under a storm watch through 6 a.m. Saturday as snow plows worked through Thursday night and prepared to battle expected blizzard conditions on city roads.
While the snowfall wasn’t as great as had been predicted for the season’s first storm, temperatures plummeted on cue throughout the afternoon into the evening.
The National Weather Service is warning the Naperville area could experience “intermittent white-out conditions” with blowing snow and wind gusts of as high as 50 mph. A daytime high Friday of 2-below with chill values near 40-below are expected midday.
Indian Prairie School District 204 canceled all after-school activities and building rentals Thursday through Saturday, and the NaperLights display near downtown Water Street was canceled through Christmas Eve, although the Rotary Club of Naperville Sunrise said the lights and music will stay up through New Year’s Day.
All Naperville Park District programs scheduled after 3 p.m. Thursday and all day Friday were canceled and all park district offices and facilities will be closed with the exception of Fort Hill Activity Center at 20 Fort Hill Drive, which will remain open as a warming center.
Fort Hill also will be available for use by fitness members and those who wish to use the walk/jog track, group exercise programs and open gyms, although Friday hours will be modified 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Childcare will not be available.
All Forest Preserve District of DuPage County forest preserves and buildings will be closed and programs canceled Friday.
The closure includes all DuPage forest preserve recreational facilities — parking lots, trails, off-leash dog areas, shelters, and fishing lakes — as well as the district’s headquarters office and six education centers.
”The Forest Preserve District of DuPage County holds the health and safety of its visitors and staff in high regard,” Director of Public Safety & Services Scott Eisenmenger said in a news release. “With a forecast like this, we encourage people to stay home to avoid hypothermia and frostbite, which can occur in a short period of time in conditions like we’re expecting,” he said.
District facilities are expected to reopen on Saturday, but visitors should go to dupageforest.org or the district’s Facebook page for updates.
In Will County, forest preserves are scheduled to reopen Friday dependent on operations crews’ ability to clear ice and snow.
A release from the forest preserve district said every effort will be made to open each preserve in a timely fashion, with priority given to the district’s visitor centers.
Updates on preserve and visitor center closures will be posted on the district website, www.reconnectwithnature.org, and its Facebook page.
The city of Naperville has 22 plow trucks and 50 to 75 other vehicles available to work around the clock to clear the roads. Staff members will be working 12-hour shifts and the city’s water and electric utilities and Transportation, Engineering and Development staffs will be assisting in the snow operations, city spokeswoman Linda LaCloche said.
Speaking at this week’s Naperville City Council meeting, she said the city will be sending messages directly to the public, emphasizing three points, she said.
“One, if you don’t have to travel on Thursday or Friday, please don’t,” she said. Having fewer cars on the roads helps the city deal with the blowing snow more effectively, she said.
Those who do have to travel need to “be aware the roadways will not be clear due to the snow that’s going to be blowing across the roadway,” LaCloche said.
“Our trucks will go down and plow, but most likely because of 40 to 50 mile per hour winds, the roadways will then immediately cover with snow again,” she said.
Motorists need to drive slowly and be cautious.
Those venturing out should wear proper clothing, limit their time outdoors and be careful on sidewalks, train station platforms and parking lots, which may be slippery, the city advised in social media notices Thursday morning.
Lastly, residents should remove cars from the streets so plows can clear snow, LaCloche said. The city’s smaller trucks are used to get into neighborhoods and their job made easier if drivers don’t have to weave around parked cars.
Parking cars in a garage or on the driveway might be a challenge, especially with family visiting or home for the holidays, she said, “but if you can, please help us out in that way.”
Residents and businesses will be alerted of the latest winter storm information through the city’s social media and website. The city also will communicate through Naper Notify, its mass communication system, LaCloche said.
The city’s online snowplow tracking system will be operating, LaCloche said.
As of late afternoon, the map showed nearly all the roads were salted with sections of the city still in need of plowing.
Mayor Steve Chirico said the public works staff will be stressed over the next few days as will the police and fire departments, which will likely be busy responding to storm-related crashes.
When the temperature drops well below zero, the city also receives fire calls because home heating systems stop working and homeowners are forced to switch to alternative heating sources that are sometimes dangerous, he said.
Bad weather also puts additional challenges on city utilities workers, who are called out to repair broken electric lines that come down in high winds or to fix water mains that break during subzero temperatures, the mayor said.
“All of our staff will be stressed, very much, during the holidays, which is awful timing. It’s always awful timing, but during the holidays, especially,” he said.
It’s important that staff understand that he and the council appreciate all the good work that’s been done throughout the year and the extra effort that’s going to be needed this weekend with the storm, Chirico said.
WHERE TO GET HELP
If you need help related to problems resulting from the weather, here are some recommended websites:
Warming centers and shelters in Naperville and Will and DuPage counties and winter weather tips — www.naperville.il.us/cold-weather-resources.
Winter car care and travel tips — www.weather.gov/safety/winter-before.
Winter weather protection tips, including dressing in layers, signs of frostbite and hypothermia, and proper use of generators and warming devices — www.ready.gov/winter-weather.
Statewide road conditions — www.gettingaroundillinois.com.
Centers for Disease Control’s guide for extreme cold weather and winter safety — http://bit.ly/3cQPmZH.
