Chicago Cold Spell: No End In Sight As Sub-Zero Temps Lead To Season's 15th Cold-Related Death

After the polar vortex and the clipper system that followed it, there's just one way to describe Chicago's current state of winter weather: Bitter.

Chicago awoke to a bone-chilling Thursday morning after 20-below wind chills from the night before. A wind chill advisory in effect from 7 p.m. Wednesday to noon Thursday had the National Weather Service warning that "frostbite and hypothermia can occur in a matter of minutes," according to the Tribune.

The deep freeze also was a factor in a death of a man, believed to be homeless, who was found in a Logan Square alley Tuesday morning. The medical examiner said the man, said to be in his 60s, died from hypothermia due to cold exposure. According to ABC Chicago, it's the 15th cold-related death of the season in Chicago.

Temperatures won't rise much through next week, with Friday bringing the "warmest" feel as temperatures rise into the 20s. National Weather Service meteorologist Matt Friedlein told DNAinfo Chicago the cold air mass is coming north from Canada and the Arctic Circle -- with 1 to 3 inches of snow expected to follow Friday.

By Monday, the high may not climb above zero and wind chills could reach 30 or 40 below. On Tuesday, we may see 2 above. Maybe 10 on Wednesday.

(Read here for information on Chicago's warming centers.)

"Really, there is no foreseeable end to the deep cold here," NWS meteorologist Kevin Birk told the Tribune.

Meanwhile, cold and wind has been disrupting transit, with delays reported on Metra, as well as delays and even a few cancellations at Midway and O'Hare, the Sun-Times reports.

So far, the winter has been a colder and snowier one than normal for the Windy City: Meteorologists tell the Tribune the metro area already notched 14 days (six is the norm) with minimum temperatures of zero degrees or lower.