Jan. 12 (UPI) — The FAA is reporting two-hour delays into Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport due to a cold weather snap that has left snow and ice in the region.
Snow is forecast to become heavier today and throughout evening, with as much as an inch of snow per-hour.
The FAA has instituted a Traffic Management Program for inbound and outbound flights. As a result, some arrivals have been delayed by an average of one hour and 46 minutes, with delays of a half hour or more reported for departing flights.
As of 12:15 p.m. EST there were 397 flights canceled and another 174 delayed out of O’Hare. At Midway, there were 140 cancellations with 18 flights delayed, according to FlightAware.
The winter storm moved into the Chicago area Friday morning, according to ABC 7 in Chicago. The wintry mix is expected to continue throughout the region.
Officials issued a Winter Storm Warning, in effect until noon Saturday for Grundy, Kendall, LaSalle, eastern Will, northern Will, southern Cook, southern Will, central Cook, Lake, northern Cook, DuPage, Kane, McHenry, Boone, DeKalb, Lee, Ogle and Winnebago counties in Illinois.
Forecasters said strong winds could also blow snow to create blizzard-like conditions and slick roads.
The falling snow is expected to ease Saturday morning, but windy conditions could still lead to poor travel conditions.