Wind Chill Warning remains, more cold on the way

When the clock strikes 8AM, Rockford will be sitting below the 0-degree mark for 57 consecutive hours. Why is that significant? It's because this is the same amount of hours Rockford spent below zero during the polar vortex in January 2019. 

If you recall, Rockford broke it's all-time record low, registering a low of -31°. Now it goes without saying that air temperatures this time around haven't been as cold. But with the wind chill factored in, it has felt more like -30° to -35° at times. 

Wind chills that low will still be on the table for the first half of our Tuesday. 

That is why the National Weather Service continues to keep all of our northern Illinois counties under a WIND CHILL WARNING until 12PM. After the warning expires, a WIND CHILL ADVISORY will be in place area-wide, which will last through the overnight hours and into mid-morning Wednesday.

Wind chills values under the advisory could run as low as -20° to -25°. Again, make sure your doing as much as you can to keep yourselves, your loved ones, and your pets safe from the extreme cold. Especially during the morning hours today when the lowest wind chills will be felt. As a reminder, frostbite is possible within 10 minutes on any exposed skin.

If we don't hit or get above zero this afternoon, this multi-day stretch of sub-zero temperatures will come to a close Wednesday as highs peak in the low teens. From there, temperatures are to remain above 0° into Thursday morning and Thursday afternoon.  

Our next cold front is then scheduled to pass through late Thursday, bringing with it a chance for snow as well as another shot of bitterly cold air. Highs will be limited to the single-digits Friday and Saturday, with overnight lows falling well-below zero. Don't worry, improvements are on the way. Southwest flow returns Sunday, bringing high temperatures into the upper teens Sunday, then into the low 30s by Monday afternoon.