First "snow of the season" brings messy commute, school delays

DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) - Winter weather said hello to some across central Illinois on Monday morning with bitterly cold wind chills and several inches of snow.

Some areas like Decatur and Springfield saw temperatures in the 20's and a few flurries in the morning while places like Champaign and Effingham saw several inches of snow.

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The snow on Monday morning delayed some school districts while others chose to use the day as online learning from home.

Traffic crashes piled up in some counties. Effingham County Sheriff Paul Kuhns said his department handled 14 crashes between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. Several crashes involved vehicles rolling over, according to Kuhns, but no one was badly hurt.

Illinois State Police also handled several crashes on interstates along the eastern part of the state.

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The National Weather Service listed snow totals for several communities:

Champaign - 2.3"
Mattoon - 0.1"
Decatur - 0.0"
Ogden - 2.4"
Rantoul - 2.0"
Tuscola - 1.0"

The snow on Monday coming from lake effect bands drifting south off Lake Michigan.

Areas closer to the lake saw snow ranges from 3 to 4 inches.

Temperatures on Monday climbed into the 30's, but wind chills made the feels like temperate in the upper 20's.

Any snow on the ground won't last long as temperatures across central Illinois are expected to climb into the 40's on Tuesday and into the 60's midweek, according to the WAND Weather team. The weekend forecast could see temperatures in the 70's.

Winter, by the way, doesn't start until Dec. 21.