CHICAGO — Chicago was hit with more than 19 inches of snow over the weekend, canceling Super Bowl plans for some and leading Chicago Public Schools to cancel classes Monday.
As of 6 a.m. Monday, 19.3 inches of snow fell at O'Hare International Airport and 19.2 inches at Midway International Airport, according to the National Weather Service.
The totals were enough to rank the weekend blizzard as the fifth largest snowstorm in the history of Chicago, though accumulations will not be official until around noon when lake effect snow ends, said Ricky Castro, a spokesman for the National Weather Service.
"Business as usual," said Malika Donald, 48, of Uptown, who was running errands Sunday afternoon. "It's Chicago; if you live here, you have to deal with it. And, it's actually not that cold today."
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The heaviest snowfall ever in the city occurred Jan. 26-27, 1967, when the city was blasted with 23 inches of snow, Castro said.
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From Jan. 1-3, 1999, the city was blanketed with 21.6 inches of snow. Between Jan. 31- Feb. 2, 2011, another 21.2 inches of snow hit the city, and 20.3 inches fell between Jan. 12-14, 1979, Castro said.
This weekend's storm caused hundreds of flights to be canceled and major delays at the airports. More than 1,300 flights were canceled at O'Hare and another 305 at Midway as of 10 p.m. Sunday, according to the city's Aviation Department.
As of 8 a.m. Monday, O'Hare canceled 785 flights for the day and Midway canceled an additional 90 flights, the Aviation department said.
The Kennedy Expressway's express lanes were also closed as of 11 a.m. Monday to both inbound and outbound traffic for snow removal.
Chicago shouldn't see much more snow Monday, but temperatures will be 10-17 degrees, and the wind chill could fall to 6 below zero, Castro said.
More snow is expected overnight Tuesday and this weekend, according to the National Weather Service.
The YMCA is offering refuge for parents looking for a place to bring their children while school is out. The "School Days Out" program offers age-appropriate activities for school-age children.
The program is available at several city locations, including High Ridge YMCA, 2424 W. Touhy Ave.; Lake View YMCA, 3333 N. Marshfield Ave.; McCormick Tribune YMCA, 1834 N. Lawndale Ave.; and South Side YMCA, 6330 S. Stony Island Ave.
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