Breezes chill Chicago but 90° only 90 miles away
Cool winds off Lake Michigan Monday took a big bite out of the 80° temperatures which proved such a welcome treat here this past weekend. But, record breaking early season heat wasn’t far away. Nearly four dozen weather observation sites from Nebraska across Iowa and downstate Illinois—15 in Illinois alone—recorded 90° highs.
The July-level readings established new records at a number of locations. Though Chicago’s lakefront managed only a 58° high and O’Hare checked in at 67°, Pontiac—just 90 miles to the southwest recorded 90° and downstate Danville laid claim to the state’s highest temperature of 93°. Records were set Monday at Moline (89°), Springfield (88°) and Paducah (88°.) Among the warmest readings downstate were the 90° highs at Champaign, Macomb, Mount Vernon, and 91° at St. Louis.
April closed just over a degree below normal making it the first sub-normal April since 2000.
--By Tom Skilling, WGN-TV Chief Meteorologist