CHICAGO – Severe weather passed through the Chicagoland area Wednesday, bringing strong winds, heavy rain and leaving behind damage in some areas.
LIVE UPDATES:
- 8:25 p.m.: Severe Thunderstorm Warning issued for parts of Illinois and Indiana until 1 a.m.
- Midway Airport’s ground stop is in effect until 8 and O’Hare airport’s is in effect until 9 p.m.
- 7:30 p.m.: Severe Thunderstorm Warning issued for DeKalb and LaSalle counties until 8:30 p.m.
- Second round of storms is moving eastward over northern Illinois, bringing threats of damaging winds, a brief tornado or two and torrential rainfall, the NWS said.
- 7 p.m.: Tornado Watch issued for parts of Illinois until 11 p.m., according to the National Weather Service. Ground stop issued for both Midway and O’Hare airports until 8 p.m.
The forecast:
It’s been quite the day across the area, and we are not done yet. After seeing highs spike into the 90s (our hottest day of 2026 and the first time we’ve seen 90s since August of last year), we got blasted with the first line of severe weather. We’ve already seen nearly 250,000 power outage reports due to wind gusts topping 75mph. Many areas have experienced tree damage due to the wind. And for a time, the electric Metra rail lines went down. If you have photos or videos of damage, send them our way.
Another round of strong to severe storms blows through this evening and once again features a risk of wind damage. More power outages are possible. In addition, hail and downpours can be expected. The best chances for this second round will be along and south of I-80. Everything should be quiet after about 1am when the storms exit to our east. It remains very warm and muggy through the night.
Power Outages
More than 270 thousand people lost power, according to ComEd’s outage map.
To see the latest on power outages, ComEd’s live outage map is shared below:
What’s next:
Thursday will be another hot and humid day with yet another threat for severe weather. All hazards are possible with concerns for wind gusts topping 70mph, plus quick spin-up tornadoes. A couple of strong tornadoes are possible in the region. Outside of that, expect a lot of thunder and lightning plus heavy rainfall at times. The window for severe storms still appears to be between 4pm and 10pm. Things should settle down quickly overnight into Friday, and the humidity will back off as well.
Look for sunshine and highs near 80 on Friday with much less humidity.
The weekend will primarily remain dry, but there is a chance for some rain and rumbles late Saturday. Highs will go from the 80s Saturday to the middle 70s on Sunday. The comfortable air will hang with us for the first half of the week: highs staying in the 70s and lows will fall into the upper 50s. There are a few more small chances for rain and storms Tuesday into Wednesday.
The Source: The information in this report came from the National Weather Service and Fox Chicago meteorologists.
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