UPDATED Friday 7:15 a.m. – Icy conditions forced some roads to close in Central Illinois and some schools to close or delay opening on Friday. Much of the area is also under a Wind Chill Advisory. Here are the latest closures:
CHAMPAIGN COUNTY
Champaign Unit 4 Schools – Closed Friday
Heritage Unit School District #8 – Closed Friday
Ludlow District 142 – Closed Friday
Mahomet-Seymour CUSD #3 – Closed Friday
Rantoul City Schools 137 – Closed Friday
Rantoul Township High School – Closed Friday
St. Thomas School in Philo – Closed Friday
DEWITT COUNTY
Clinton CUSD #15 – Closed Friday
Heyworth CUSD #4 – Closed Friday
FORD COUNTY
Gibson City Melvin Sibley Unit 5 Schools – Closed Friday
Paxton Buckley Loda CUSD #10 – Closed Friday
MACON COUNTY
Decatur Public Schools – Closed Friday
Maroa-Forsyth Schools – Closed Friday
Meridian CUSD #15 – Closed Friday
Mount Zion CUSD #3 – Closed Friday
PIATT COUNTY
Deland Weldon CUSD #57 – Closed Friday
Monticello CUSD #25 – Closed Friday
VERMILION COUNTY
Bismarck-Henning CUSD #1 – Closed Friday
Danville District 118 – Closed Friday
Georgetown-Ridge Farm Schools – Closed Friday
Hoopeston Area School District #11 – Closed Friday
Salt Fork Schools – Closed Friday
Westville School District #2 – Closed Friday
ROAD CLOSURES
Updated Friday at 7:30 a.m.: The city of Champaign tweeted that South Mattis Avenue between Kenny Drive and Curtis Road has reopened. Public works closed the stretch of roadway nearly 12 hours earlier because of car accidents and icy road conditions.
According to the National Weather Service Central Illinois office, up to three inches of snow fell in the Champaign-Urbana area on Wednesday and Thursday. Temperatures plummeted Thursday evening below freezing turning much of the snow and slush into solid ice.
WIND CHILL ADVISORY
In addition, the National Weather Service Central Illinois posted a Wind Chill Advisory for Cass, Champaign, DeWitt, Fulton, Knox, Logan, Macon, Marshall, McLean, Menard, Morgan, Peoria, Piatt, Sangamon, Schuyler, Scott, Stark, Tazewell, Vermilion and Woodford Counties until Friday at 10:00 a.m. Low temperatures on Thursday night/Friday morning are forecasted to be in the single digits with wind chills as low as 20 below zero.
The City of Rantoul has opened a warming shelter at Forum Fitness Club at 100 E. Flessner Avenue until 9:00 p.m. After-hours, people looking for warmth are encouraged to go to the police department at 109 E. Grove Avenue.