CHICAGO (AP) - Chicago officials say both of the city’s major airports are getting back to normal operations following Wednesday’s record snowfall.
City Aviation Commissioner Rosemarie Andolino says O’Hare International Airport reopened the 13,000 foot runway needed for heavy flights and those headed for Asia and the Pacific. She says six O’Hare runways will be open later today, and that a seventh is not yet needed.
Andolino says crews are using large snow-melting machines because of the sheer volume of snow and no place to put it all.
Andolino says United Airlines anticipates a low arrival rate today with a full ramp up of operations by about 4 p.m. She says Southwest Airlines is operating a full schedule. She says travelers should still call the airlines to check on flights.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) - A website listing events to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Civil War will launch on Feb. 1.
It’s intended to be a comprehensive calendar of events. When it starts it will list all events and memorials submitted so far.
Users may add other events by following instructions on the site.
Illinois Historic Preservation Agency Director Jan Grimes says she hopes the website serves as an official guide to all that’s happening in Illinois to commemorate the four years of the bloodiest war in U.S. history.
She says Illinois supplied some of the Civil War’s greatest leaders — including Abraham Lincoln, whose term as president coincides with the war — and many of its soldiers.
Online: www.illinoiscivilwar150.org
OTTAWA, Ill. (AP) - Authorities say they’ll never know how much alcohol was in a northern Illinois woman’s system at the time of the car crash that killed her husband on Dec. 5. (more…)
MADISON, Wis. (AP) - Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker says his NFC Championship Game bet with Illinois Governor Pat Quinn involves team colors and some volunteer time. (more…)
MACOMB, Ill. (AP) - Trustees of Western Illinois University have named Provost Jack Thomas the school’s 11th president.
In a unanimous vote Tuesday, university trustees chose Thomas from among four finalists picked by a presidential search committee.
Thomas is replacing President Al Goldfarb, who plans to retire in June. Goldfarb took office July 1, 2002, leading the university during a period of reduced financial support from the state of Illinois.
Thomas says his first 100 days in office will be spent meeting staff, faculty and students to determine what they believe are the most pressing issues on campus.
Thomas was chosen over Edinboro State University President Jeremy Brown, Northern Michigan University Provost Susan Koch, and Tim Hudson, special assistant to the chancellor for international studies and initiatives at the University of Houston.
CRYSTAL LAKE, Ill. (AP) - An owl attack has left a 4-pound Chihuahua with a healthy fear of the dark. (more…)
CHICAGO (AP) - Former President Bill Clinton is coming to Chicago Tuesday to campaign for mayoral candidate Rahm Emanuel, but his visit is the cause of some controversy. (more…)
CHICAGO (AP) - Chicago police say someone pointed a handgun at the assistant majority leader of the Illinois House.
Authorities say Democratic state Rep. Edward Acevedo wasn’t injured in the Friday night incident. Police say someone in a van pointed the gun at the legislator before the vehicle pulled away. It happened in the Heart of Chicago neighborhood.
Acevedo has been in office since 1997 and is serving his seventh term. He represents the state’s 2nd district.
Police say no arrests have been made and investigators did not have a motive.
CHICAGO (AP) - An Illinois law requiring a daily moment of silence in public schools is back in effect after a two-year hiatus.
The Chicago Tribune reports that the Illinois State Board of Education notified schools Friday that the law is back.
A federal injunction barring the moment of silence has been in place for two years.
Illinois legislators approved the Silent Reflection and Student Prayer Act in October 2007. The law was challenged in court by Rob Sherman, an outspoken atheist, and his daughter Dawn, a student at Buffalo Grove High School in suburban Chicago.
U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman overturned the law in 2009, but a federal appeals court ruled the law is constitutional because it doesn’t specify prayer.
Gettleman reportedly lifted the injunction Thursday.
CHARLESTON, Ill. (AP) - Campus officials have evacuated a building at Eastern Illinois University after a suspicious package was found.
EIU spokeswoman Vicki Woodard said she didn’t have complete details, but the Charleston school’s Health Services Building was evacuated after the package was found Thursday morning. Campus police are investigating.
Woodard wasn’t sure what kind of package was found or who found it.
She said the building holds the school’s counseling service center, career services, and one academic department. She wasn’t sure if any classes are held in the building.
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press.
