Twelve to 20 inches of snow is expected to hit Central Illinois by Wednesday in one of the biggest snowstorms of the season. Ice will accumulate to a quarter of an inch, and winds will gust to 35 mph in the afternoon and night. The National Weather Service has also issued a Winter Weather Advisory Monday morning that remains in effect throughout Tuesday.

The growing storm has the city, University and community taking any and all measures to stay safe and avoid getting snowed in.

“We’re preparing for all kinds of weather actually,” said Rich Coyne, operations manager for the Urbana Public Works department. “We’re pre-wetting the roads with a salt brine for ice that is predicted to develop later.

“We could be in a situation where we have tree limbs come down from the ice and wind, and of course snow buildup on top of that,” Coyne said, “We’ll maintain a crew for salting ice and snow, and we’ll go to 12-hour shifts when the time comes.”

Coyne said Urbana Public Works will work “midnight to noon,” and then “noon to midnight,” to keep the city safe and clean.

Similarly, Champaign Public Works is thoroughly preparing for every possibility.

“We’ve checked all vehicles to make sure they’re working, and we’ve made sure the salt and icing agents are all in stock,” said Stacy Rachel, administrative services manager for Champaign Public Works. “We are mobilizing our staff to work 12-hour shifts.”

Both Coyne and Rachel said, however, that the University falls under its own district that it is responsible for cleaning.

Robin Kaler, associate chancellor for public affairs, said that shutting down the University is improbable.

“We have lots of experiments that require constant heat and care, so we can’t simply tell everyone to go home,” Kaler said, “But if the weather is bad, we’ll use our best judgment in deciding to send people out on the roads.”

Kaler encouraged students to check the University website repeatedly throughout the day for additional information, and added that the emergency text messaging service would be utilized if necessary.

Class cancellation is at the professors’ discretion, Chancellor Robert Easter said in an e-mail to the University on Monday. The campus in its entirety would never fully close as a matter of campus policy, he said.

In anticipation of the University operating at normal hours, the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District is making accommodations.

“There will be additional buses and supervisors out during the storm,” said Tom Costello, assistant managing director for the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District. “We’ll be out early in the mornings to check the road conditions, and assuming that they are passable, we will get buses to where they’re going on time.”

Grocery stores in Champaign-Urbana have seen an increase in sales since Monday as people continue to stock up in anticipation of poor traveling conditions, and hardware stores are quickly selling out of all snow supplies.

“We have some snow shovels left, but most other storm-related items are gone,” said Arlene Cooper, owner of Round Barn True Value Hardware in Champaign.

Aside from buying essential food and supplies, residents of the campus and cities should know how to turn off gas, electric power and water in the event of an emergency, according to the American Red Cross.