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CHICAGO — As the Thanksgiving weekend came to a close, travelers faced significant disruptions at Chicago airports, with many flights delayed or canceled due to a winter storm sweeping through the Great Lakes area. Meanwhile, the Northeast was experiencing a mix of rain and snow.
On Sunday evening, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) implemented a ground stop from 7:39 p.m. to 9 p.m. This was due to a “disabled aircraft” that had been stranded on a runway.
The aircraft involved appeared to be a small jet, though details about the number of passengers on board were not immediately available.
This situation is still unfolding. Stay tuned for further updates.
Elsewhere, in Wisconsin, utility crews were busy restoring power to thousands of residents. Meanwhile, in Des Moines, Iowa, the airport resumed operations on this crucial travel day after a Delta Connection flight from Detroit slid off an icy runway. Fortunately, there were no injuries, and passengers were safely taken to the terminal by bus.
In western Michigan, hundreds of churches advised their congregations to remain at home or participate in services online. Regions near Lake Michigan had seen up to 12 inches (approximately 30 centimeters) of snowfall since Saturday.
On Saturday, 8.4 inches (21.34 centimeters) of snow fell at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, setting a record for the highest single calendar day snowfall in November at the airport, according to the National Weather Service. That broke the previous record of 8 inches (20.32 centimeters) on Nov. 6, 1951.
RELATED | Saturday was snowiest November day in Chicago’s recorded history, NWS says
Over 270 flights into and out of O’Hare had been canceled by midafternoon, while over 1,200 had been delayed, according to the tracking site FlightAware. The Federal Aviation Administration said at one point on Sunday that departures to O’Hare were delayed on average by nearly an hour due to snow or ice, and that departures from the airport were delayed an average of 15 minutes.
Planes were being de-iced at several airports across the country on Sunday, including at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport, according to the FAA.
On Sunday afternoon there were nearly 400 flights into and out of Detroit Metro Airport that were delayed and over 300 canceled, according to FlightAware.
In Wisconsin, We Energies reported more than 6,000 power outages, with more than half in Milwaukee and South Milwaukee. Mark Paladino said on Facebook that he was shoveling snow Sunday when his apartment complex lost power in Fredonia. Others said power lines were sagging under heavy, wet snow.
Elsewhere in Iowa, gusty winds Sunday were blowing snow back onto roads, extending hazardous travel conditions, the National Weather Service said.
“We did have areas of Iowa and Illinois that saw over one foot of snow,” including 15 inches (38 centimeters) in Fort Dodge, Iowa, said meteorologist Andrew Orrison.
He said snow in the Great Lakes region was tapering off, but a new storm was heading to the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, with up to a foot (30 centimeters) of snow by Tuesday.
“It’s going to be the first snowfall of the season for many of these areas, and it’s going to be rather significant,” Orrison said. “The good news is that it does not look like the major cities at this point are going to be looking at any significant snowfall.”
ABC7 contributed to this report.
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