DECATUR - The Decatur area got its first dose of snow Sunday and Sunday night, but weather forecasters said it could have been a lot worse.

While accumulations were not expected to exceed an inch or two, Bloomington and communities stretching towards Peoria were hit with up to six inches. Winds gusting to 30 mph caused problems with blowing and drifting and dropping temperatures made driving slick.

Decatur and surrounding towns also were bracing for some difficult road conditions Sunday night as falling temperatures produced icy spots on roads where earlier snowfall had melted. Patchy snowfall was expected to continue for the first half of today and then ease off.

Tuesday was forecast to be drier, but another cold front with precipitation is due Wednesday. Forecasters say what it will bring is too close to call right now: "It will be kind of close, temperature-wise, and at this point it looks like it could be either rain or snow," said Patrick Bak, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Lincoln.

"Or maybe it will be a little bit of both."

Bak said the Decatur area should count itself lucky it dodged the worst of winter's first significant bullet Sunday. He said the heaviest snow was mainly north of a line extending from Interstate 72 and snowfall fell off sharply in the area south of Decatur.

"And yet Bloomington did have six inches, and that's not too far away from Decatur," he added.

Elsewhere in Illinois, the state's opening snowstorm had canceled 50 flights as of Sunday evening at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport.

And airport authorities said low visibility Sunday afternoon had added to flight problems and prompted delays of up to an hour.

The Weather Service had warned the Sunday storm could dump up to 8 inches of snow in some northern counties.

A winter storm warning covered all of North Central Illinois and remained in effect through midday today. Police cautioned that drivers coming home from holiday travel could face tough conditions and delays, depending on their routes into and through Illinois.

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.