Lack of a high under 45° by now almost without precedent

Fall 2004’s been so mild, the city hasn’t recorded a single daytime temperature lower than 46°. It’s a meteorological situation almost without precedent. Over 135 years of official records here, only 1931 had failed by Nov. 23 to produce an autumn high of 45° or lower. Other stats underscore the remarkably mild nature of the season. Only eight mornings this fall have produced temperatures of 32° or lower—far short of the 17 considered normal. That’s a situation which has been matched only six times at O’Hare since 1959.
It may be mild here—but that’s not the case to Chicago’s southwest. Winter storm watches have been posted for parts of the Texas Panhandle, where 6-8” snow may accumulate by Tuesday night.
A storm responsible for 24-36” snow in the San Gabriel Mountains outside Los Angeles, Calif., Monday is behind the wintry assault on the southern Plains. The storm’s warm sector drenched Austin (4.61”) and San Antonio (3.47”)—both daily records.