Chicago’s long bout with late winter cold and snow may finally be showing some signs of breaking down. However, before milder conditions move in, the city will have to endure one more reinforcing shot of cold and light snow in the early part of the upcoming week. The first chink in the cold’s armor will come on Wednesday as southerly winds send highs toward the 40º mark. But the real break in the cold should arrive by Friday as expected highs reach the lower 50s bringing the city its mildest weather since New Year’s Eve.
Forty-six years ago today on March 4, 1961, Chicago’s South Side was reeling from a major tornado that raced through the area at speeds approaching 50 m.p.h. Temperatures surged into the 70s just south of the city in advance of this twister, but in typical, volatile March fashion, just four days later on March 8 heavy,wet snow blasted Chicago as a strong low pressure system passed through the Ohio Valley.
--By Steve Kahn, WGN Weather Center Meteorologist
