Severe weather conditions could make for a hazardous Election Day across Illinois Tuesday, sparking officials to urge residents to vote early if possible, but much still remains uncertain when it comes to the forecast.
While scattered showers and storms, with the potential for some hail, are expected to grow widespread Monday evening, the threat for severe conditions will move in Tuesday afternoon and evening, which also marks Election Day across the city and suburbs.
The threat comes after severe weather tore through the Chicago area Friday, bringing wind gusts in excess of 80 miles per hour and at least a dozen tornadoes to the region.
There's a limited risk for severe weather Tuesday, but unlike last week's storms, the certainty of the threat is less certain.
According to the latest forecasts from the NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center, some of the Chicago area is at an “enhanced risk” of severe thunderstorms on Tuesday, including parts of DeKalb and LaSalle counties. The rest of the area is under a "slight risk."
Just like Friday’s storms, the main threats with a potential outbreak Tuesday would be damaging hail and wind gusts, along with a chance of isolated tornadoes.
But unlike Friday, the threat for severe weather hinges on a "cap" of warm air.
According to the NWS, if the "cap" of warm air is strong enough, it could prevent any storms from developing at all. If it weakens enough to allow thunderstorms, "they will quickly become severe."
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Those storms could then be capable of producing "destructive hail" and possibly more tornadoes, with the potential for "extensive damage."
The biggest timing for such a threat will be late Tuesday afternoon and into the evening hours, sparking warnings from some election officials.
“The National Weather Service is predicting damaging winds and hail as well as potential tornadoes for the afternoon and evening on Election Day, April 4," Max Bever, director of public information for the Chicago Board of Elections, said in a statement. "If they can, we urge Chicago voters to take advantage of the last day of Early Voting this Monday, April 3 and to return their Vote By Mail ballots back to any Secure Dropbox in the city. Don’t delay and vote today."
Temperatures are expected to reach into the upper-60s on both Tuesday and Wednesday, with readings then dropping into the upper-40s and low-50s by Thursday behind an approaching cold front.
Showers and storms will again be possible Wednesday morning.
As always, stay tuned to the NBC 5 Storm Team’s latest forecasts on all platforms, including our station’s 24/7 Streaming News channel and on the NBC Chicago app, available on both Apple and Android devices.
