The Streak Is Over: Chicago Finally Gets An Inch Of Snow
CHICAGO (CBS) -- An inch of snowfall in January wouldn't typically even be noticed by most Chicagoans, but this year is a bit different.
RELATED: Traffic Reports
For the first time in about 11 months, an inch of snow fell in Chicago. That snaps the record snow-less streak for the area.
Until today, at O'Hare International Airport, Chicago had gone a record-breaking 335 days without an inch of snow.
Drivers were apparently unused to the snow.
It caused dozens of accidents on Friday morning as streets were slick. Travel times on the expressways were at least four times their normal rate. Travel on the Kennedy, for example, from O'Hare to downtown was already over an hour as of 6:30 a.m.
Those travel times on some expressways increased to two hours as of 8 a.m.
Drivers trying to make it to work, could do nothing but accept this morning's extended drive time.
"When I saw the traffic, I decided to take my time and fill my gas tank," said driver Dorothy Abney, who told CBS 2's Courtney Gousman she was running about 40 minutes late for work.
One of the largest crashes involved nine cars that collided on the Kennedy Expressway near the North Avenue exit, state police said, adding that one person suffered minor injuries.
Slippery sidewalks also made for a dicey commute by foot.
The city of Chicago deployed about 200 plows to clear the streets.
The snow moved out of Chicago around 9 a.m. and CBS 2's Ed Curran reports that O'Hare got 1.1 inches of snow.
Clouds are expected later in the day with highs in the 20s. Winds will be gusting to 25 miles an hour.
