A "really intense batch of snow" was expected to hit the Chicago area Thursday morning, making things dicey for motorists before turning into rain this afternoon. Snow is expected to start in the northern suburbs around 8 a.m. before reaching the city, western and southern suburbs an hour later, according to Gino Izzi, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. A trace of snow fell Wednesday evening but it wasn’t measurable, according to the NWS. A pedestrian walks along North Greenview Avenue near West Howard Street in Rogers Park on the North Side as snow falls Thursday across the Chicago area. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times 1 of 13 A motorist scrapes snow off their vehicle on West Howard Street near North Rogers Avenue in Rogers Park on the North Side as snow falls Thursday across the Chicago area. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times 2 of 13 A person rides an electric unicycle on West Howard Street near North Rogers Avenue in Rogers Park on the North Side as snow falls Thursday across the Chicago area. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times 3 of 13 A motorist scrapes snow off their vehicle on West Howard Street near North Rogers Avenue in Rogers Park on the North Side as snow falls Thursday across the Chicago area. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times 4 of 13 A snowplow removes snow off West Howard Street near North Rogers Avenue in Rogers Park on the North Side as snow falls Thursday across the Chicago area. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times 5 of 13 A pedestrian crosses West Howard Street near North Rogers Avenue in Rogers Park on the North Side as snow falls Thursday across the Chicago area. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times 6 of 13 People shovel snow off the sidewalk on North Greenview Avenue near West Howard Street in Rogers Park on the North Side as snow falls Thursday across the Chicago area. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times 7 of 13 A pedestrian crosses West Howard Street near North Rogers Avenue in Rogers Park on the North Side as snow falls across the Chicago area, Nov. 21, 2024. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times 8 of 13 A person rides a bike in Andersonville as snow falls Thursday. | Pat Nabong/Sun-Times 9 of 13 Pedestrians cross North Clark Street in Andersonville as snow falls Thursday. | Pat Nabong/Sun-Times 10 of 13 A pedestrian walks in Andersonville as snow falls Thursday. | Pat Nabong/Sun-Times 11 of 13 A person rides a scooter in Andersonville as snow falls Thursday. | Pat Nabong/Sun-Times 12 of 13 Pedestrians walk in Andersonville as snow falls Thursday. | Pat Nabong/Sun-Times 13 of 13 A winter weather advisory was put in place at 7 a.m. and a wind advisory went into effect at 10 a.m. for the city and surrounding suburbs. Two to four inches of snow was possible and wind gusts could reach as high as 50 miles-per-hour, according to the weather service. "It's just going to be a really intense batch of snow moving south, snowing probably at the rate of an inch an hour at times with 30 to 40 mile-an-hour winds and pretty awful conditions," Izzi said. In Albany Park, Oscar Hernandez shoveled snow in front of a Cash America pawn shop where he was the store manager. Hernandez woke up to a different kind of flurry Thursday morning: jokes from friends that nature had gifted him snow for his birthday.“This is a gift,” Hernandez, freshly 33-years-old, said. “Last year we didn’t get a lot, so I’m grateful for it.”A lifelong Chicagoan originally from Rogers Park, Hernandez said he was disappointed last year when there wasn’t as much snow as the city is used to.While it’s not his favorite season — second to fall, because he likes wearing sweaters — he said dealing with snow, and by extension shoveling it and salting sidewalks, was just part of being a Chicagoan.“It’s part of tradition and part of our culture,” Hernandez said. “I’m not one to get down if there’s no snow, it is what it is. … [But] we can’t have a Chicago winter without snow.” Oscar Hernandez shovels snow in front of a pawn shop where he is the store manager Nov. 21, 2024 in Albany Park. Violet Miller/Sun-Times The storm is expected to last a few hours and then snow should turn to rain as the temperature rises above freezing during the afternoon, the weather service said. Motorists should expect to encounter reduced visibility and slushy roads causing slippery travel, the weather service added. "If you don’t have to be on the roads later this morning, that's probably gonna make your life a little bit easier," Izzi said. "It's gonna be horrific." Two to four inches of snow was expected to hit the city and surrounding suburbs Nov. 21, 2024.National Weather Service