After a few days’ respite, the Chicago area will see heat and humidity come roaring back beginning Thursday, with the chance of severe thunderstorms lurking in the forecast for the conclusion of the work week.
After two straight days of normal temperatures, the Chicago area will see the mercury soar into the 90s on Thursday, according to forecast models. Things will still remain mostly dry during the day, leading the National Weather Service to warn of an elevated fire risk due to dry ground conditions and gusty winds out of the south.
As the evening moves along, showers and thunderstorms could potentially begin to fire. Some of those storms could become severe, especially in areas south of Chicago, according to forecasts.
The Storm Prediction Center has assigned the city of Chicago a “marginal” risk of severe weather, while placing the south and west suburbs under the “slight” risk category.
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Any severe storms that develop would likely pack significant downpours, leading to localized flooding in some locations, and gusty winds are also possible.
Friday will see more of the same in terms of the warmth, but there will also be additional humidity added into the mix, pushing heat indices above 100 degrees in some locations.
Those conditions will once again fuel more thunderstorms, especially south of Interstate 80 and into northwest Indiana, according to forecast models.
Local
Things will cool a bit on Saturday, with temperatures in the mid-80s, but temps will bump back up toward 90 on Sunday, with another chance of rain and thunderstorms.
A dramatic cool down is expected heading into the new work week, with temperatures dropping back into the low 70s by Monday.
