Record-breaking heat wave envelops Chicago for 7th straight day
CHICAGO -- A heat wave might soon come to an end, but it had one more record to break on Tuesday as the temperature hit 91 at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, marking the seventh day in a row of unprecedented heat, CBS Chicago reports.
The official temperature for Chicago continued climbing to 92 Tuesday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service, which announced the news on Twitter. The previous record for Sept. 26 was 90 degrees, set in 1998.
It was the seventh consecutive day of temperatures in the 90s in Chicago — the longest such stretch this year. All seven days were record highs for their respective dates:
- Monday's high of 92 beat the Sept. 26 record of 90 set in 1933
- Sunday's high of 93 beat the Sept. 24 record of 91 set in 1891
- Saturday's high of 95 beat the Sept. 23 record of 91 set in 1937
- Friday's high of 94 beat the Sept. 22 record of 92 set in 1956
- Thursday's high of 94 beat the Sept. 21 record of 92 set in 1970
- Wednesday's high of 92 beat the Sept. 20 record of 91 set in 1931
By comparison, there was only one day in all of August when the temperature reached 90 in Chicago, only two in July, and only six in June. Before this past week, the longest streak of 90-degree days in 2017 was a three-day stretch in early June.
The heat wave should come to an end on Wednesday, when the temperature is expected to top out in the low 70s. Starting Wednesday, highs will be in the 60s and 70s through the start of next week.
