Strong winds gusting across the Chicago area Friday morning could impact the rush hour commute and even lead to power outages, the National Weather Service warned, with a wind advisory issued and 30-degree temperatures back in the forecast.
Early Friday morning, winds were already gusting near 40 miles per hour, NBC 5 Storm Team Meteorologist Alicia Roman said. At 5:35 a.m., NBC Chicago’s Matt Rodrigues reported seeing traffic poles and lights down at the corner of Roosevelt and Indiana near the Museum Campus due to the gusts.
“A very windy start to the day,” Roman said, with wind chills making morning temperatures feel like the 20s. “I expect them to increase this morning.”
A wind advisory issued by the NWS, with sustained winds of 30 mph and even higher gusts near 50 mph will go into effect for all of northeast Illinois, as well as Kenosha County in Wisconsin and parts of northwest Indiana at 6 a.m. Some of the strongest gusts are expected to occur around 9 a.m., Roman said.
“Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects,” the NWS warned. “Tree limbs could be blown down, and a few power outages may result. Winds this strong can make driving very difficult.”
The powerful winds come hours after severe weather struck parts of downstate Illinois, with preliminary reports of funnel clouds and tornado touchdowns near Douglas and Robinson.
As the winds pick up, snow moving in from the west will start to flurry, Roman said, reaching DeKalb County about 6 a.m. Flurries will continue to move eastward as the morning continues.
“We’re not looking at a lot of snow,” Roman said. Flurries could continue in the far northern counties through the afternoon.
The flakes will fall under mostly cloudy skies, with high temperatures in the upper 30s. Temperatures will remain cold Saturday, Sunday and Monday, with readings staying in the low 30s and more snowflakes possible Sunday morning.
“Definitely colder temperatures all around as we approach the weekend, but the cooldown is short-lived,” Roman said, with temperatures rising back into the 40s by midweek.
