Late-season storm icing up Sauk Valley roads

A wintry mix of light snow and freezing drizzle is making for slippery road conditions and dropping 1 to 3 inches of snow across the Sauk Valley, which is under a weather advisory until 4 p.m.

A light glaze of ice and less that a half-inch of snow is expected the rest of the afternoon, with winds gusting as high as 35 mph making accumulations seem heavier in spots.

If you must drive, you can call 511 for the latest in road conditions.

Snow is cleared from the sidewalk in front of Dixon High School this morning after a late winter storm blanketed the Sauk Valley. (Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@shawmedia.com/)

The National Weather Service forecast:

Tonight:

A chance of rain or freezing drizzle before 7 p.m., then a chance of freezing drizzle between 7 and 11 p.m. Areas of fog after 4a.m. Otherwise, cloudy, with a low around 30. East wind 5 to 15 mph becoming north after midnight. Chance of precipitation 40%.

Tuesday:

Areas of fog before noon. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a high near 41. Northwest wind around 5 mph.

Tuesday night:

Mostly cloudy, with a low around 29. Northeast wind around 5 mph.

A Dixon plow clears snow on this morning in the downtown area, where sleet and snow made for slippery driving conditions. (Earleen Hinton Shaw Media/)

Wednesday:

Partly sunny, with a high near 47.

Wednesday night:

Rain likely, mainly after 1 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 36. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New precipitation amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible.

Thursday:

Rain likely, mainly before 1 p.m. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 46. Breezy. Chance of precipitation 70%. Low that night around 31.

The heavy sleet and snow knocked out a power line in Dixon, causing traffic lights at the corner of Peoria and Everett to go out for a time. (Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@shawmedia.com/)

Friday:

Sunny, with a high near 49 and a low around 27.

Saturday:

Sunny, with a high near 54, and a low around 32.

Sunday:

Mostly sunny, with a high near 60.

That’s more like it.

Source: The Daily Chronicle