Title: Hurricane Sandy Updates Monday, Oct 29 Source:
Various URL Source:[None] Published:Oct 29, 2012 Author:Various Post Date:2012-10-29 12:05:12 by Brian S Keywords:None Views:3615 Comments:9
Instead of loading up the sidebar with Sandy related articles, I'm going to put mine on this thread and anyone else that wants to is welcome as well.
#9. To: Warning for Chicago as Sandy hits East Coast, 'Stay off the lake folks' (#0)
Staff and Tribune wire services 3:51 p.m. CDT, October 29, 2012
Officials had a simple warning as the Chicago area braced for high winds and waves from a massive storm along the East Coast.
"Stay off the lake folks," said Gary Shenkel, executive director of Office of Emergency Management and Communication. "Lake winds are going to be 50 to 60 mph. Waves could exceed the 24-foot mark. So please stay off the lake ... This could be a very dangerous situation."
The National Weather Service has issued a lakeshore flood warning for the Chicago area from 1 a.m. Tuesday until 4 p.m. Wednesday and a high wind warning from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday for Lake and Porter counties in Indiana because of the storm on the East Coast, where Hurricane Sandy is on track to collide with a wintry storm moving in from the west and cold air streaming down from the Arctic.
Chicago Park District officials said they have been securing beaches and plan to close the lakefront trail from North Avenue to Ohio Street beginning at 11 p.m. today.
The CTA is prepared to reroute buses as necessary, depending on the waves, Shenkel said. Throughout Tuesday, outdoor concessions on Navy Pier and the ferris wheel will be closed.
For now, the city does not plan to close Lake Shore Drive, Shenkel said. "We do not want to close Lake Shore Drive," Shenkel said. "We're prepared to at any time should there be an event out there."
National Weather Service meteorologist Richard Castro advised waterfront high-rise residents to secure items on their balconies, and joggers and bicyclists should avoid the lake shore.
"The fact we're seeing impact in the wind out here in the Midwest — the magnitude of this storm is really rare," Castro said.
Sandy is so large, he added, that it's also preventing the cool weather system over Chicago from moving out. Temperatures aren't expected to rise higher than 50 degrees through at least Thursday.
About 550 flights out of Chicago have been canceled because of the gathering storm. Airlines canceled more than 400 flights at O'Hare International Airport and more than 90 at Midway International Airport.
