It may feel more like the 4th of July instead of Memorial day in Chicago this weekend, as the city prepares for the arrival of the season’s first 90º days and muggy 70º dew points. Lingering clouds and light showers should depart later today setting the stage for weekend sunshine that will send the mercury soaring.
Chicago’s heat will arrive in force Sunday as winds lose their lake trajectory, blowing in from the southern Plains, where numerous record highs were established Thursday, including 92º at Joplin, Missouri and 96º at both Tulsa and Oklahoma City.
The severe thunderstorms that raked Chicago late Wednesday moved east to blast areas from Michigan to Kentucky on Thursday, with nearly 220 reports of severe weather. After reviewing damage from Wednesday evening’s storms, the National Weather Service determined that an F1 tornado struck southeast of Kankakee near Aroma Park.
-Steve Kahn, WGNTV Meteorologist
WGN-TV Chief Meteorologist Tom Skilling and the WGN Weather Center staff provide daily coverage of weather in the Chicago area.
