Lexington, IL - Emergency Management Agency (EMA)

12/20/2025

12/16/2025

Hello…. Spring? Is winter over before it officially started? We can only hope. 😉

Not only are we talking about rain and wind on Thursday with the front coming through, but I can't discount a few thunderstorms that pass through part of our area. Doesn't look to be a problem at this point, though.

That's Illinois weather for you, I suppose!

12/14/2025

Expect an ice rink today. Salt will lose effectiveness and snow will be blowing as we sit at around -30 real feel. Today isn’t better than yesterday because the snow stopped falling.

12/13/2025

It’s not even actually winter yet, you guys. 😣

TONIGHT: Snow will begin to blow leading to DANGEROUS travel in areas that have been hit with heavy snow today. The snow is VERY powdery and will drift significantly. Wind gusts expected to pick up tonight after sunset with gusts 20-25 likely, more than enough to move the snow around.

12/13/2025

North of us isn’t looking any better. 😣

12/13/2025

We’ve been upgraded. If you don’t HAVE to leave, don’t. Bloomington is worse than we are, and will continue to decline. Plows cannot keep up. If you HAVE to travel (emergency, work) keep an emergency kit in your vehicle and make sure you have a full tank in case you get stuck.

12:45 pm Update:

Areas from Bloomington to Danville and Paris have been upgraded to a Winter Storm Warning, where storm total accumulations of 5-8" are expected. Recent reports of 5" or more have been received from Normal, Urbana, and Danville.

12/13/2025

It’s starting early today! Please make sure your vehicles are moved off of the street so the plows can work. Bitter cold moves in directly after this and will keep the roads in bad shape through Sunday into Monday.

Snow will begin this morning and taper off this afternoon. Highest snowfall rates (up to 1" per hour) look to begin around 9 am and diminish around 3 pm.

12/12/2025

Saturday is a good "stay home" day. Salt will have a difficult time clearing the ice, so travel impacts will be high.

12PM UPDATE - I have increased confidence in travel impacts for Saturday afternoon/evening in our area for some of us. I think tomorrow's hit looks a little more impactful than today's, not necessarily just because of the snow. It's so cold, it will be hard to treat roads with salt & brine, so impacts will be longer lasting as well.

12/11/2025

Snow tomorrow evening, bitter cold all weekend with more snow accompanying the cold on Sunday.
The “warm up” next week will be welcomed, indeed.

Timing of the snow on Thursday is maybe an hour or two earlier than initially thought. We expect snow to ramp up 4-6 PM, with the greatest impacts from 7p-3a to roads/travel.

12/10/2025

Possible snow squalls tomorrow for the AM commute! Not a lot of accumulation, but with 40-50mph winds it can become blizzard conditions quickly. It won’t last long, but long enough to cause a serious travel disruption.
Winter is here to stay!

Let's talk about all these "snow squalls" you've been hearing about for tomorrow:

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Weather lesson:

1. What is a snow squall? A snow squall is a brief, intense, convective snow shower that can bring a 10-15 minute period of strong wind gusts and intense snow rates to any given location. They develop when there is marginal instability and usually are accompanied by strong frontal boundaries or low pressures. Similar to a traditional severe thunderstorm, they are isolated to scattered in nature, so 75-80% will be missed; but boy, if you're in that 20% that gets hit then you'll be in for a treat! It'll be a mini-blizzard!

2. So why do we post about them if only 20% will see it? Well, it comes down to travel. This is BY FAR NOT a bread/milk situation. When you're driving and you drive into a squall, then visibilities can drop to near zero and roads can become snow covered FAST as snow falls hard. This 10-15 minute period of heavy snow can lead to accidents, and historically has lead to some of the deadliest pile-ups.

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Forecast:

Okay, enough of the lecture; here's your forecast: Winds will crank up tonight ahead of the powerful front from the SW gusting up to 45MPH. Between 5AM to 10AM the front will move through IL turning the wind direction from the SW to the NW, gusting up to 50MPH.

While this front moves through, snow squalls will be accompanying it between 5-6A(NW IL), 6-8A(central IL), 8-10A(eastern IL). These snow squalls will be brief, only lasting 10-15 minutes, but during these 10-15 minute periods there will be winds gusting up to 55-60MPH and heavy snow falling.

Given these will move through during rush hour, don't be surprised if you go from cloudy, good travel conditions to blizzard conditions within minutes, then back to clear but slick conditions 15 minutes later.

I don't expect a lot of accumulation, maybe a 1/2" at most; but given that 1/2" could fall in 15 minutes with 55MPH winds; the mini-blizzard during rush hour has my attention.

By tomorrow around lunch time these squalls will push out, but more flurries and snow showers are possible in the afternoon.

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Preparedness:

How to prepare? Not much you can do if you're traveling to work. If you're caught in a sudden snow squall while driving, do the following:

1. Slow down, don't suddenly stop
2. Turn on low beam lights or hazard lights
3. Keep your distance from the car in front of you
4. Try to pull off in a rest area, parking lot or exit. Don't stop on a major highway
5. Be aware it'll all be over in 15 minutes and carry on with your day.

Snow squalls are brief in nature and while briefly intense, will move out as fast as it starts. Just please be aware and you'll be okay!

We will be posting updates tomorrow morning for you folks!

Forecaster: Carlos Wyant