Lake-effect snow event still on tap for portions of the Chicago Metro area including the City of Chicago from eastern Cook County into northwest Indiana from Friday afternoon and evening into Saturday

Some of the coldest air of the winter will be spreading into this afternoon Friday on strong north-northeast winds. As these winds blown down the length of ice-free and warmer than normal Lake Michigan, lake-effect snow will develop taking aim primarily at areas near the lake from eastern Cook County south into northwest Indiana. Because the trajectory of the wind will be more northerly than northeasterly, the heaviest lake-effect snowfall is expected to develop south of Lake County Illinois and Kenosha and Racine counties in southeast Wisconsin where only light snow is expected.

A concentrated plume of heavy lake-effect snow is likely to develop somewhere from Chicago south into extreme northwest Indiana by late Friday afternoon and continue into Saturday morning. The band will gradually work east into Lake and Porter counties in northwest Indiana on Saturday as the steering winds gradually become more northwesterly.

Very heavy snow with near white-out conditions are likely to develop in the heaviest band with accumulations of 6 inches or more of snow in localized areas.

Conditions in lake-effect snow are quite variable can can change from white-conditions to sunshine in a short period of time or across small distances.

The remainder of the Chicago Metro area away from the main lake-effect threat can expect just light snow or snow showers with minor accumulations of less than an inch.