Cold weather and snow were expected to follow after a line of severe storms triggered tornado warnings across the Chicago area late Wednesday. In wake of the storm, several power poles were knocked down, prompting road closures and outages. In West Chicago, downed power lines fell onto Prince Crossi ng Road and all lanes were shut down from North Avenue to Hawthorne Lane, according to the West Chicago Police Department. The road remained closed Wednesday night. Dozens of homes in the area, particularly in the west and south suburbs, reported power outages. Seventy-two homes were without power as of 8:30 p.m. Wednesday. Crews were working to restore service, ComEd said. The area could see snow showers throughout Thursday morning before conditions begin to clear in the afternoon, the National Weather Service said.The snow showers would follow after severe weather brought quarter-sized hail and winds up to 60 mph and warnings of tornadoes across Chicago and northern Illinois late-Wednesday afternoon. Weather officials issued a tornado watch until 9 p.m. for counties south of Interstate 80, including La Salle and Kankakee, as well as Benton and Newton counties in Indiana. The severe weather threat will continue to increase across the region this evening, primarily in northwest Indiana. The primary threat is for damaging winds, but the threat for tornadoes is there for areas near and south of I-80. #ILwx #INwx pic.twitter.com/1bR3U4CkNt— NWS Chicago (@NWSChicago) March 19, 2025 A wind advisory was in place for much of northern Illinois and parts of northwestern Indiana from 11 p.m. Wednesday to 7 a.m. Thursday, according to the weather service. Due to poles and wires down in the roadway, all lanes of Prince Crossing Road are shut down from North Avenue to Hawthorne Lane. Please avoid the area until further notice. pic.twitter.com/yAgemMSQkH— West Chicago Police Department (@West_Chicago_PD) March 19, 2025 Thursday morning's commute will be chilly, with temperatures around 30 degrees, weather officials said. Hail in Oak Lawn IL. Not snow. HAIL. With tornado sirens on full blast. Love this weather. Gotta love Chicago weather! pic.twitter.com/mjvyvlm3iD— yeah No (@DemBoys1919) March 19, 2025 The snow may create some slick spots on roads and reduce visibility due to the high winds, weather officials said. "Take it slow out there on the roads. Leave extra distance between [drivers] and the car in front of them and prepare for extra travel time, especially during the morning commute," said Brett Borchardt, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. "I know we've had some nice, warm spring days, but we're still in the time of year where we have to deal with winter driving." Spring starts Thursday, but Chicagoans can expect snow for a few more weeks.Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times The wild weather pattern comes as spring begins Thursday. The city usually sees the last snow of the season near the end of March or early April, though there have been instances of snow falling in Chicago in mid-April, Borchardt said. "It is typical to see snowflakes all the way through the rest of the month," Borchardt said. Friday will be partly sunny with temperatures in the mid 50s — though conditions could feel cooler as wind gusts up to 30 mph were expected to move through the area. ...read more read less