Meteorologists warn of 'intense' snow in Great Lakes states and record lows in South

CHICAGO (AP) — Large swaths of the U.S. prepared for one of the season’s first blasts of wintry weather Sunday as temperatures dipped and snow fell in the Northern Plains, snowstorms developed eastward across the Great Lakes and the South prepared for a big chill.

Flurries fell Sunday across parts of the Chicago area, a precursor to “intense” snowfall forecast to start in the evening in communities surrounding Lake Michigan. The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning into Monday, predicting wind gusts of up to 30 mph (48 kph) and as much as 18 inches (46 centimeters) of quickly-falling precipitation, along with thundersnow, a condition when thunderstorms combine with snow.

“This band is going to drop some very heavy snow and some hairy scenarios for the Monday morning commute,” said weather service meteorologist Kevin Doom in Romeoville, Illinois.

Meteorologists said conditions for road travel in northeast Illinois would be “dangerous to impossible” from snow accumulating faster than 3 inches (8 centimeters) per hour.

As temperatures dropped across the nation's midsection, meteorologists warned of hazardous travel conditions through winter weather advisories for Michigan, Indiana and Wisconsin. Snow fell Sunday in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, where meteorologists warned of low visibility with up to a foot by Monday. In Indiana, weather experts predicted up to 11 inches (28 centimeters) of snow and “slippery surfaces” for road travel. Up to 6 inches (15 centimeters) of snow were predicted in parts of Wisconsin.

“Patchy blowing snow” and wind chills hovering near zero were expected in portions of Minnesota, Nebraska and South Dakota. Some areas got measurable fluff a day earlier, including 4 inches (10 centimeters) of snow in southwest Minnesota and more than 5 inches (13 centimeters) in slices of northern Iowa.

Cold weather warnings were issued for Ohio, West Virginia and Kentucky, with freezing temperatures predicted through Monday morning for a large swath of the South, from Texas and Oklahoma to Alabama and Georgia.

Weather experts issued special guidance for gardeners, saying the freeze warning means the growing season has ended.

“Take steps now to protect tender plants from the cold,” warned meteorologists in Arkansas.

A car is covered with snow during a cold day in Evanston, Ill., Sunday, Nov. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Pedestrians cross a street during a cold day in Chicago, Sunday, Nov. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Fans bundle up before an NFL football game between the New York Giants and the Chicago Bears in Chicago, Sunday, Nov. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Pedestrians cross a street during a cold day in Chicago, Sunday, Nov. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

A pedestrian bundles up as she walks on the sidewalk during a snowy day in Chicago, Sunday, Nov. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Pedestrian walks on the sidewalk during a snowy day in Skokie, Ill., Sunday, Nov. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

A car is covered with snow during a cold day in Evanston, Ill., Sunday, Nov. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

A pedestrian bundles up as she takes a walk with her dog during a snowy day in Northbrook, Ill., Sunday, Nov. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune announced a plan Wednesday to fully fund the Department of Homeland Security, moving past a split between the two Republican leaders that resulted in Congress leaving Washington last week without a fix to a record-setting partial government shutdown.

They said in a joint statement that “in the coming days” Republicans in Congress will return to a Senate plan to fund most of the department through an agreement with Democratic senators, with the exception of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Border Patrol. Republicans would then try later to fund those agencies through party-line spending legislation.

Neither outcome is guaranteed, and the strategy could potentially still face opposition from the GOP’s own ranks even though President Donald Trump has given his support.

“We appreciate and share the President’s determination to once and for all bring an end to the Democrat DHS shutdown,” said Johnson, R-La., and Thune, R-S.D.

The plan represents a do-over of what senators had in mind when they passed a bipartisan funding agreement through unanimous consent last Friday. The Senate could approve similar legislation as soon as Thursday morning through unanimous consent, but even if that happens, it's unclear how quickly the bill could move through the House. It will likely take several months for Republicans to act on the second part of Trump's plan and pass budgeting legislation to fund ICE and Border Patrol.

House Republicans refused to go along with the Senate plan last week, instead changing the bill to fund all of DHS for 60 days.

As a result, the shutdown continued as lawmakers left for their home states and congressional districts for a two-week recess. The DHS shutdown reached its 47th day on Wednesday.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement, "Republican divisions derailed a bipartisan agreement, making American families pay the price for their dysfunction."

The announcement from the GOP leaders showed that for now, Thune and Johnson are on the same page. Their working relationship experienced a rupture late last week when Johnson — at the urging of many House Republicans — rejected Thune’s plan.

The top Republicans hoping the path ahead will win over skeptical GOP colleagues, but the most conservative lawmakers are likely to seek full funding for all of Trump’s immigration and deportation operations.

“Let’s make this simple: caving to Democrats and not paying CBP and ICE is agreeing to defund Law Enforcement and leaving our borders wide open again,” Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pa., posted on X. “If that’s the vote, I’m a NO.”

It is uncertain whether Johnson could find enough support from the House to recall lawmakers back to Washington before their spring recess ends in mid-April.

Meanwhile, the narrow budget package being prepared for later this year is expected to fund ICE and Border Patrol through the remainder of Trump’s term, as a away to try to ensure those agencies are no longer at risk from Democrats objecting to the president’s immigration enforcement agenda.

Earlier Wednesday, Trump weighed in on the shutdown, using a social media post to seemingly call on Republicans to fund the immigration portions of DHS through a bill that would not require Democratic support. He said he wanted the legislation on his desk by June 1.

“We are going to work as fast, and as focused, as possible to replenish funding for our Border and ICE Agents, and the Radical Left Democrats won’t be able to stop us,” Trump said.

House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries released a statement saying, “It’s time to pay TSA agents, end the airport chaos and fully fund every part of the Department of Homeland Security that does not relate to Donald Trump’s violent mass deportation machine.”

The vast majority of Homeland Security workers continue to report to work during the shutdown, but many thousands have been going without pay. That led to more Transportation Security Administration agents calling out from work, causing frustrating security lines at some of the nation's biggest airports. Those bottlenecks appeared to be clearing this week as agents began receiving backpay, per an executive order from Trump.

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Associated Press writer Lisa Mascaro in Washington contributed reporting.

Sen. Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., speaks during a news conference after a policy luncheon on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, March 24, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill, Friday, March 27, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)