Roads slick, residents without power, after winter storm knocked Sauk Valley

An aggressive winter storm muscled its way through the Sauk Valley Tuesday afternoon and early Wednesday morning, leaving behind a spread of wet, heavy snow and a sheet of slick ice responsible for dangerous roads and power outages.

A National Weather Service winter storm warning for Carroll, Lee, Ogle and Whiteside counties, first issued Tuesday morning, expired at 9 this morning.

According to the NWS Quad Cities’ location, the “potent winter storm” produced a band of heavy snow, totaling 8 to 12 inches, and freezing rain and sleet in the region stretching from Interstate 80 to U.S. Highway 20.

The stretches of Interstate 88 and Interstate 39 that run through Whiteside, Lee and Ogle counties were “partly covered with snow,” as of 9:10 a.m., according to the Illinois Department of Transportation.

County highways across the Sauk Valley also were still slippery with snow and ice, as sheriff’s departments cautioned on social media of precarious travel conditions.

“Now with the temperature dropping the roads that were slush this morning are now starting to freeze over,” the Lee County Sheriff’s Department wrote at 9:30 a.m. on Facebook. “Use caution.”

The winter storm’s winds and freezing rain also dealt blows to power lines throughout the Sauk Valley.

As of 10:30 a.m., 55 separate outages were responsible for 603 customers without power across Lee, Ogle and Whiteside counties, according to ComEd.

A majority of the outages, 45, were central to Lee County, which was reporting 527 people had no power.

Forecasters warned the storm would bring intense snow fall Tuesday afternoon and evening, and freezing rain into this morning.

According to the NWS, meteorologists’ predictions were largely correct. Snow fell for nearly 7 hours, from 2:30 p.m. to 9 p.m., then transitioned into freezing rain, which fell throughout out the night.

As of 5 a.m., the freezing drizzle moved out of the area, the NWS reported. Temperatures remained steady in the high 20′s and wind speeds topped out at 24 mph.

In Whiteside County, snow totals ranged from 7.8 inches in Fulton, to 6 inches in Morrison, to 5 inches in Sterling.

Ogle County recorded 6 inches in Forreston.

Lee County logged 3 inches in Ashton and 6 inches in Dixon.

Carroll County reported the highest snow totals, with Lanark at 9 inches, Mount Carroll at 8 inches, Chadwick at 7 inches and Milledgeville at 6.7 inches.

Forecasters further warned today that another storm likely will “bring the potential for impactful wintry weather” to the Sauk Valley early on New Year’s Day.

While a full forecast wasn’t yet available, meteorologists predict snow and freezing rain will again begin falling Friday morning, south of Interstate 80, then move northward throughout the day as a wintry mix of snow and freezing rain.