The Chicago area will see several rounds of rainfall in the coming days, but according to new guidance from the National Weather Service and the Storm Prediction Center, severe weather could pose a threat to the region as well.
The latest SPC forecast has northern and central Illinois, as well as northwest Indiana, at a “marginal” risk of severe weather. While that is the lowest of the five categories determining the likelihood of severe weather in an area, officials say that strong-to-severe storms could fire as a system moves through the region.
According to NWS officials, two rounds of storms could potentially impact the area Wednesday, with the first arriving in the afternoon and the second arriving in the late evening and lasting into the overnight hours.
Those storms could potentially produce damaging hail and gusty winds, as well as soaking downpours.
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NBC 5 Storm Team modeling suggests that the overnight storms into Thursday morning could be much-more widespread, with some severe storms potentially forming as the bulk of the moisture swings through the area.
Overnight temperatures will continue to rise, with some areas south of Interstate 80 possibly seeing readings in the low-60s as the system hits its peak.
Those storms could even impact the Thursday morning commute before clearing out of the area, leaving falling temperatures and cloudy skies in their wake.
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Once that rain clears out of the area, temperatures will begin to drop, with lows expected to plunge back into the 30s Thursday night and into Friday morning.
A chance of showers will remain in the forecast for Friday, with the possibility of some mixed-in snow in locations where the temperatures will hover around freezing in the evening hours.
Saturday should be mostly dry, with high temperatures back around their seasonal levels in the mid-to-upper 40s.
