NOTE: This watch was upgraded Wednesday evening to a winter weather advisory that now includes several Chicago-area counties. See the latest update here.
A winter storm watch has been issued in two Chicago-area counties beginning Thursday as a storm is expected to dump several inches of snow on parts of northern Illinois.
The watch, which begins at 1 p.m. Thursday and continues through 10 a.m. Friday, includes Lake and McHenry counties, in addition to Winnebago and Boone counties. There, 6 inches of more of "heavy wet snow" is possible.
According to the alert, travel could be "very difficult" during the storm.
"The hazardous conditions could impact both the Thursday evening and Friday morning commute," the weather alert states.
The watch also says shoveling could be difficult due to the "expected heavy, wet nature of the snow."
The National Weather Service predicts the storm system will bring both snow and rain to the Chicago area Thursday afternoon through Friday morning, though accumulations will vary across the area.
Local
The system is still developing and much could change in the hours ahead, particularly as even the smallest shifts in the storm's path could change snow projections.
As of Wednesday morning, the NBC 5 Storm Team said locations far north of Chicago could see accumulations in excess of 4 inches, while other parts of the region could see between 1 and 3 inches. The NWS agrees, saying the biggest impacts will be along the Illinois-Wisconsin border, though it could extend as far as south as Interstate 80.
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Areas south are more likely to see rain than snow with this system, however.
The precipitation is expected to begin as early as Thursday evening, continuing into Friday morning before gradually coming to an end.
