40-50 m.p.h. gusts—potentially October 2006’s highest

Northwest winds “stacked” vertically from the ground tens of thousands of feet aloft into a powerhouse 180 m.p.h. jet stream combined with the intensification of a major autumn storm set the stage for a very windy day in Chicago Saturday. Peak gusts could reach or exceed 45 m.p.h. as happened Oct. 1 at O’Hare Airport and Oct. 2 at Midway. The storm, centered in Kentucky, is to deepen explosively as it races north to western New York by evening. Its central pressure is predicted to plunge over that half-day period an impressive 27 mb (0.80”)—that’s a huge drop and a development which encourages air to rush into the system at increased speeds. Wind velocities surge when that happens.
Chicago was spared the driving rains which doused areas downstate Friday, including Carbondale (2.48”) and Indianapolis (1.77”). But clouds and drizzle lingered, limiting temperature movement. By late Friday, readings varied only 1 degree here over a 34-hour period.
--By Tom Skilling, WGN-TV Chief Meteorologist