Jan 17, 2008 9:10 pm US/Central
Chicago Preparing For Weekend Deep Freeze
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
Say good-bye to the mild weather we've been having. After Thursday night a bitter artic blast will blow through Chicago, putting us in a deep freeze for several days.
CBS 2's Joanie Lum reports that city officials are on stand-by to make sure you stay safe.
Brisk temperatures cause pedestrians to pick up the pace. City officials urge everyone to stay indoors or keep trips outside brief for the next couple of days. They're especially concerned about the homeless.
Tony Ruiz, Executive Director of Chicago's Office of Emergency Management and Communications said Thursday that residents worried about neighbors or elderly family members should "call 311 to get an outreach team. We'll do a well being check and arrange for the necessary assistance."
Extreme cold can be painful and that's the first sign of frostbite. Hospital emergency room doctors expect to be busy with frostbite cases this weekend.
Dr. Janet Lin, a physician at the University of Illinois-Chicago Medical Center, said, "you're freezing the cells and so the pain is probably the first thing that you actually see. The worrisome thing is when you don't; when you actually freeze the cells, then the cells could actually die off."
Skin can freeze in minutes.
So can roads, ramps and bridges. A truck jack-knifed near the Tri-State Tollway at Cicero Thursday afternoon and ended up facing the wrong direction on the ramp due to icy conditions.
To avoid water problems inside, Chicago's water commissioner advised homeowners to run a small trickle of water to keep pipes from freezing.
"This tap should be one of the one's thats furthest from where your water service enters your building. Generally, that would be in the back of the building on one of the top floors. That way, the whole plumbing system is engaged," Water Management Commissioner John Spatz said.
Some Chicagoans vowed to stay indoors until the bitter turns bearable.
Jamie Eagle said, "I'm going to stay home the whole time."
Terri Evans said, "I don't have to go out of the house. I have enough food in the house and so I'll just ride that out."
The city's Department of Human Services has three 24-hour warming centers open and officials are extending the hours of other public buildings that serve as temporary warming centers.
CBS 2's Dana Kozlov contributed to this report.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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