More than three inches of snow falls at O’Hare as hundreds of flights canceled during winter storm

Though nearly 1,000 flights have been canceled at Chicago airports, O’Hare was relatively quiet early Saturday afternoon, and not too chaotic, according to Kate Paulsen, who was trying to catch a flight to Budapest for some holiday shopping.

With most cancellations scheduled for later in the day, a few travelers still waited inside, unsure of what would happen to their plans.

Paulsen, her mom, and her sister were supposed to land in Budapest on Saturday, but a last-minute American Airlines cancellation threw their plans off course. They’d already lost the first day of their trip, and even after hours of searching for another flight, they were striking out.

“We’re supposed to be visiting the holiday markets there,” said Paulsen, 37, of Iowa. “If we can’t fly out today we’ll have to cancel the whole trip.”

Los Angeles resident Gail Edenson found herself waiting at O’Hare after her flight home was delayed more than an hour due to the weather.

“If it’s Chicago, you have to expect for this to happen,” said Edenson, who was in Chicago visiting family for the holiday.

Edenson, who grew up in Chicago, wasn’t surprised by the setback, but she was still hoping to get out of the city on Saturday.

As of Saturday afternoon, 874 flights were canceled at O’Hare International Airport, and about 124 flights were canceled at Midway International Airport, according to the city’s Department of Aviation.

Additionally at O’Hare, delays were reported to be about 82 minutes and about an hour at Midway.

A ground delay was also issued at O’Hare with some flights delayed by more than five hours, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

A winter storm warning was issued from 3 a.m. Saturday to 6 a.m. Sunday by the National Weather Service. The Chicago area is expected to see 5 to 9 inches of snow when it’s all over, likely by Sunday midday.

As of noon, 3.2 inches of snow had fallen at O’Hare airport, said National Weather Service meteorologist Kevin Donofrio. At Midway, it was slightly less, at 2.5 inches, Donofrio said.

The snow had been falling pretty steadily since 6 a.m., according to NWS meteorologist Zachary Yack.

The snow — which will leave between 6-10 inches almost evenly in the Chicago area except far north suburbs such as Waukegan — looks to be tapering off by mid the late morning on Sunday, according to Yack. The heaviest snowfall rate will be from Saturday afternoon until 8. p.m.

“There could be patchy accumulations overnight as well,” Yack said.

Temperatures as of noon hover between 26 and 28 at both airports and will possibly reach 30 by sunset Saturday, and gradually rise to 32 or 33 by daybreak, Yack said.

Snowfall was expected to intensity throughout Saturday, making roads hazardous.

Motorists should slow down, he added, saying he had not heard of any major traffic crashes or injuries due to the weather.

“Just be aware of any drastic changes in visibility and snow in the roadway,” Yack said. Try to avoid traveling Saturday afternoon until about 8 p.m.

“Just take it slow and allow extra time to travel.”

The Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation deployed more than 220 salt spreaders overnight in response to the storm.

Crews would continue to work into the afternoon, monitoring arterial streets, DuSable Lake Shore Drive, and bridges and overpasses, to ensure roads are safe and passable for emergency vehicles, public transportation and other travelers, the agency said.

As of midday Chicago police and fire spokespersons reported no major weather-related incidents though Pacific Gardens Mission representative Nick Bustillo told the Sun-Times they have had a “100 percent” uptick in people needing their help in the storm.

The mission, in the city’s West Loop neighborhood at 1458 S. Canal St., has 877 beds but if they are filled, mats are placed in the facility’s auditorium and chapel to help those in need. They’re not at capacity yet, he said, but are “getting close.”

“People are calling and wanting to come in because the weather is pretty bad,” Bustillo said.

Additionally, Bustillo said for the first time in the mission’s decades-long history, they have canceled Saturday events due to the inclement weather.

“We don’t want someone to drive in here and have an accident,” Bustillo said.

Chicago’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications Asst. Dir. Frank Velez told the Sun-Times though it’s still fairly early in the storm, nothing major had been reported in the city.

“Right now we’re just paying attention to the national weather center,” Velez said as of midday.

“We are working closely with Streets and Sanitation during plowing periods and they’ve extended their hours until tomorrow and Monday depending on the weather,” Velez said.

The city’s warming centers are open and their hours are also being extended.

No heat outage emergencies have been reported in any buildings, Velez said, adding ComEd has also not reported any unusual electrical outages that are storm related.

No significant spikes in calls have come in to the city’s 311 center, either. Data for 911 calls was not yet available.

“So far there hasn’t been been an abundance of (311) calls yet,” Velez said, while urging friends and relatives to check on seniors or others needing special assistance.

“Please make sure to check on seniors for their well-being. Call 311,” Velez said.

“If you don’t have to get out to drive or travel, don’t,” added OEMC spokesperson Mary May. “Safety is number one.”

Weather clearing tools to help with icy sidewalks and driveways are still available on the city’s Northwest Side’s Ave Hardware in Edgebrook,5423 W Devon Ave.

Cashier Dylan Yale says they’ve had a few people calling about snow blowers, though no sales Saturday.

“Yeah pretty much everyone’s been in here for salt. Usually people just buy one 40 pound bag or two,” Yale said.

“We’ve sold a couple shovels but people around here already have them,” Yale added.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.