Upper Midwest Locked In Dangerous Cold Snap
Temperature Drops To -31 In Northeastern Minnesota; Frostbite Can Set In Within Minutes
http://cbs2chicago.com/national/midwest.cold.snap.2.636835.htmlCHICAGO (CBS) ― Bitter, dangerous cold has descended on the Upper Midwest for the second time in less than a week, with the air temperatures falling to 27 below zero in some parts of Wisconsin.
In Chicago early Wednesday morning, the temperature fell to -4 at O'Hare International Airport. It was slightly warmer downtown at 2 degrees, but in west suburban Aurora, temperatures bottomed out at -11. But to make matters worse and more dangerous, a northwest wind of 13 mph sent wind chill factors plunging to -22 at O'Hare.
An elderly Chicago woman was the latest victim to succumb to the wicked weather. She died from hypothermia after being found outside wearing a coat and shoes just steps from her back stairs on the city's northwest side. She was the eighth person to die from the cold so far this season in Chicago.
Anyone heading out this morning should be advised that frost bite can set in after only about 30 minutes on exposed areas, according to the National Weather Service. Facts On Frostbite And Hypothermia
Temperatures sunk even further into the minus zone throughout Wisconsin.
Subzero weather has blanketed the state from Milwaukee to Superior. In the northwest Wisconsin town of Phillips, the air temperature was -27 Thursday morning without the wind chill.
Some Wisconsin school districts started classes later that usual because of the severe cold.
The cold is more severe still in parts of Minnesota. It was -12 early in the morning in Minneapolis, according to CBS station WCCO-TV. But compared with some areas of the state, that reading was balmy.
The National Weather Service says at 4 a.m., the mercury got down to 31 below in Cook, in northeastern Minnesota. Much of the rest of the state was in the teens below zero.
Forecast highs were also bitter across the area. In Chicago, the high for Thursday is only 10. In Green Bay, Wis., it is 7, while Minneapolis can expect 9.
Detroit had it comparatively easy, with temperatures already at 10 above just before 8 a.m. Eastern Time. Highs there are expected to reach 19 degrees, reports CBS station WWJ-TV.
The good news in all of this is that the temperatures are not expected to stay super-cold for long. By Monday, the forecast high in Minneapolis is 33 degrees, in Detroit 40 degrees, and in Chicago an unseasonable 43 degrees.
