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Dear Tom,

My wife and I will soon be celebrating our 32^nd anniversary. I proposed to her on Valentine’s Day in 1990, but the plans for our special evening were stymied by a major snowstorm. Details?

Rodney V.  Highwood

Dear Rodney,

That snowstorm on February 14, 1990, was memorable as it brought Chicago to a standstill. The snow began falling heavily shortly after the noon hour, and visibilities quickly dropped to near zero. The storm reached peak intensity during the evening rush hour. When the snow ended early Feb. 15, 8-12 inches of snow had fallen across the area. Strong northeast winds gusting above 30 mph piled the heavy, wet snow into huge drifts. Restaurants were plagued by  no-shows and canceled dinners and many Valentine’s bouquets went undelivered. Downstate, the storm produced freezing rain and sleet, encasing much of central Illinois in ice. Ironically, highs reached the middle 50s in Chicago on both February 12 and 13, preceding the paralyzing snowstorm.