Brief gush of 'much colder air' may usher in first snowflakes of season for Chicago area Friday

The Chicago area could see the "first flakes of the season" though no accumulation is going to happen during a brief cold stretch expected to arrive by Friday morning, weather forecasters say.

The lows Thursday and Friday are 33 and 30 degrees respectively, which could create conditions for lake effect snowflakes mixed in with rain and thunderstorms but not accumulating snow, according to the National Weather Service.

"It will be a relatively short-lived period of colder weather there before we warm back up," said Kevin Birk, a meteorologist with the weather service.

"There is going to be a change here in the weather pattern and it's going to allow for much colder air to spill in across the area here towards the weekend," said Birk. "That could set the stages for some rain, maybe even some potential for some snowflakes."

Until then, conditions are expected to be cloudy with highs in the 60s Monday and Tuesday and dip into the 50s and 40s Wednesday, according to the weather service.

Come Sunday, we will return to 50-degree weather, according to the weather service.

"It will be a relatively short-lived period of colder weather there before we warm back up," Birk said.