Powerful winds combine with the chilliest temps since last April to bring a wintry feel to the air Saturday. Windchills across the Chicago area are to hold in the 20s through the day. Not since last April 12 have daytime readings here been any colder than the 45° predicted Saturday afternoon. Such a reading is closer to a normal afternoon high a month from now in November. In only five years of the 133 on record has Oct. 16 produced a daytime reading which failed to rise out of the 40s. They include: 1871, 1872, 1875, 1943 and 1976.
The intensifying autumn storm responsible for Chicago’s blustery weather was behind the area’s low barometric pressure reading Friday (29.37”)—the lowest pressure here since May 31. Saturday’s powerful winds buffeted the Plains and western Midwest yesterday. Buffalo, S.D. reported a gust of 57 m.p.h. Friday and nearby locations reported sustained winds in excess of 30 m.p.h. for 30 consecutive hours.
WGN-TV Chief Meteorologist Tom Skilling and the WGN Weather Center staff provide daily coverage of weather in the Chicago area.
