Triple digit heat indices likely across northern Illinois Monday & Tuesday

The cool weather from last week is a thing of the past as temperatures climbed over the weekend. In the end, Rockford peaked in the upper 80s Saturday, then right at the 90° mark Sunday.  

When you factor in humidity levels, heat indices registered in the mid to upper 90s. Unfortunately, we can expect those values to do nothing but increase for the start of the work week, which will likely leave us with the warmest days of the summer. 

Heat alerts are out for each of the next two days as the dangerous heat settles in. Rockford and areas to our south and east will be under a heat advisory from 12PM-8PM Monday, while southern Wisconsin and portions of northwest Illinois will be under an excessive heat warning until 8PM. Heat indices could be as high as 110°. 

 

Tuesday, the entire area will be under an excessive heat watch from 12PM-10PM. This may be converted to a advisory or a excessive heat warning sometime today or tonight on how high heat indices will actually get. That said, Tuesday has the potential to be worse than Monday with heat indices up to 115°. Our one saving grace would be outflow generated from the storms that passes to our north overnight into the early stages of Tuesday. Confidence in that scenario playing out as of right now isn't high. 

You can beat the excessive heat by wearing light colored clothing, taking frequent breaks in the shade and air conditioning, and of course remaining hydrated. Heat exhaustion and stroke can occur rather quickly if outdoors for too long. Pass these safety tips to your neighbors, those without A/C, the elderly, and even your four-legged friends! 

Of course, with summer-like stretches like this, it doesn't take much for storms to form. The focus for severe weather today will be mostly to our north and west of the Stateline, though a few gusty storms may be possible along and north of the Illinois/Wisconsin border. Tuesday, the Storm Prediction Center has placed areas closer to and north of the border under a level 2 of 5 Slight Risk, mainly for damaging winds and large hail. The cold front responsible for our upcoming storm chances will help cool us back into the upper 80s Wednesday and Thursday.