Some Chicago Area Residents Wake Up To Sub-Freezing Wind Chills
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The concept of cold in Chicago is all relative; in January, the temperatures across the area Thursday morning would feel like a heat wave.
But this is not January. With Chicagoans used to hot summer temperatures, it was a shock to the system to find temperatures in the 30s and wind chill values below freezing in some areas.
CBS 2 Meteorologist Megan Glaros reports as of 6:45 a.m., the temperature at O'Hare and Midway international airports was 43 and 44, respectively. But the mercury read a chilly 39 in Waukegan and Joliet, 37 in Aurora, and 36 in DeKalb.
And we're more conditioned toward hearing about heat indices at this time of year, but it was cold enough Thursday morning that the wind chills were worth mentioning. The wind chill as of 6:45 a.m. made it feel as if it were 38 at Midway, 36 at O'Hare, 34 in Waukegan, 32 at DeKalb, and 31 in Aurora.
As we all know, an actual air temperature of 31 would mean ice on the streets.
The average high temperature for this time of year is 76 degrees. But the high for Thursday is only 61. The overnight low Thursday night drops to 45, and on Friday, the high is only 60.
Temperatures will be continue to be unusually cool for the rest of the week and into the weekend. The high for Saturday is 66, and temperatures finally rebound to 72 on Sunday.
But while you may not be thrilled about this taste of early November, the cold temperatures aren't a disappointment in every way.
The cold front now over the Chicago area helped push the smoke from the Pagami Creek wildfire in northern Minnesota out of the area. So while you may need a jacket, at least you won't be coughing and feeling your eyes burning.
