CHICAGO (AP) — Warming shelters are opening across portions of Illinois as the state braces for fierce winter weather expected to bring wind chills as low as 30 degrees below zero.
The bitter weather is an unwelcome end to what had been an unusually warm January for much of the state. The National Weather Service forecasts the arctic cold front will arrive in Illinois Friday evening.
Twenty warming centers will open statewide from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. State warming centers include Illinois Tollway Oases and Illinois Department of Human Services rehabilitation offices and family community resource centers.