Winter is here: a weekend storm whipped through the early hours of Friday morning, forcing school shutdowns, power outages and more parking restrictions.
The winter storm warning went into effect during the early hours Friday morning and will stay in effect until noon on Saturday. Heavy snow, strong winds up to 45 mph and dangerous travel conditions are expected, according to the National Weather Service.
Power outages
At roughly 10 a.m. Friday, Oak Park has 20 power outages, affecting 1,078 customers, according to the Commonwealth Edison Company, or ComEd, website.
River Forest currently has nine outages, affecting 128 customers. Each area outage affects less than 5% of the customers served in that area, according to ComEd.
Closings
Oak Park’s Village Hall is closing at 1 p.m. Friday due to worsening weather conditions, according to an emergency notification. Essential public safety and snow command staff will continue operations. Village Hall will also be closed on Monday, reopening at 9 a.m. Tuesday.
The Wonder Works Children’s Museum at 6445 W North Ave. is also closed due to the weather, according to a news release.
Parking restrictions
River Forest prohibits parking on any village street for eight hours after snowfall accumulates two or more inches due to potential impediment of village operations, according to a news release. These restrictions are in place.
The village also requires that property owners must clear sidewalks at their residential or business properties within 24 hours after a snowfall.
Oak Park parking restrictions went into effect 10 p.m. Thursday and will be in place until conditions improve, officials said.
Where to stay warm
During periods of extreme weather, like this weekend’s winter storm, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church and Oak Park Public Library locations will operate as emergency centers.
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, located at 611 Randolph St. in Oak Park, will be open 24/7 starting at 6 p.m. on Jan. 13 and until the morning of Jan. 22, depending on conditions, John Harris, a member of the Oak Park Homelessness Coalition, said. The church can accommodate up to 20 people, said Kimberly Adami-Hasegawa, office administrator for Good Shepherd Lutheran Church.
The organization is actively seeking volunteers. Takeout 25 will be providing dinner through area restaurants as well, Harris said.
Oak Park Public Library locations, including the main location at 834 Lake St., Dole Branch at 255 Augusta St. and Maze Branch at 845 Gunderson Ave. serve as warming centers to the public during regular operating hours. The locations will be closed from 3 p.m. Friday until 1 p.m. Saturday due to the weather warnings.
The locations will also be closed Monday, OPPL Director of Communications Jodi Kolo said.
This story has been updated.