Lake Michigan is freezing over as extreme cold weather hits parts of the U.S. this week. The Midwest, from the Dakotas to Western New Yo...
Lake Michigan is freezing over as extreme cold weather hits parts of the U.S. this week.
The Midwest, from the Dakotas to Western New York, is experiencing some of the coldest temperatures to hit the region in more than two decades, according to The Weather Channel — and the lake is feeling the effects.
As wind chill temperatures in Chicago dropped as low as -51 degrees Farenheit on Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service, parts of Lake Michigan turned to ice.
Residents across Michigan, Chicago and Wisconsin braved the cold to share their photos of the icy lake to social media.
“My brother was on one of the few flights into Chicago this morning,” one tweeter captioned a shot of the lake from the air. “He took this photo of frozen Lake Michigan from the plane.”
Another poster wrote, “Anyone want to go to the beach?” over a shot of Lake Michigan as seen from downtown Chicago.
Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel posted a video of the lake freezing over on Thursday morning. “Morning views from Chicago’s beautiful, frosty Lake Michigan,” he wrote.
On Wednesday morning, it was -23 degrees Farenheit in Chicago, and the National Weather Service recorded -30 in Wisconsin. The negative temps extend as far south as Kentucky, and according to The Weather Channel, things won’t get milder until the weekend.
On Instagram, users posted photos from Grand Haven, Michigan, and Holland, Michigan.
As the area freezes, it’s important to keep safe.
According to the National Weather Service, frost bite can set in with a wind chill of -20 degrees in just 30 minutes. The colder it is outside, the faster the condition — which causes a loss of feeling and a white or pale appearance in extremities, such as fingers, toes, ear lobes or the tip of the nose — will set in.
