Chicago Weather: High Wind Warning In Effect As Dangerous Gusts Bring Down Trees

CHICAGO (CBS) — A High Wind Warning is in effect until 9 a.m. Thursday.

The warning now covers the entire CBS 2 viewing area with the exception of LaPorte County, Indiana.

Widespread wind gusts of 50 to 60 miles per blew through the area Wednesday night, with isolated wind gusts as high as 70 miles per hour expected.

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As of 10 p.m., wind gusts of 60 mph were seen at O’Hare International Airport, 59 at Waukegan, 54 at Ottawa, and 51 at McHenry and DeKalb.

The strong winds will only intensify as a band of showers and thunderstorms comes in out of the west.

11:20pm | A broken line of showers will move through the area over the next few hours. Wind gusts of 55 to 65 mph will be likely through 2am. Wind gusts 40 to 50 mph at sunrise. @cbschicago pic.twitter.com/hj4oHYbRcp

— Albert Ramon (@AlbertRamonTV) December 16, 2021

The wind was strong enough to take down large trees and send them crashing onto parked cars below, as seen in some photos tweeted from Argyle Street in Uptown – near the old Essanay Studios building.

Be careful out there Chicagoan’s…trees down everywhere! Heard the biggest boom and look! #Andersonville #Chicago #weather @WGNNews @cbschicago @SPOTNEWSonIG pic.twitter.com/tqbgur5U9F

— CJC (@luann_hat) December 16, 2021

As CBS 2’s Meredith Barack reported, the two very trees that fell on Argyle Street damaged a light pole and four cars. While the Department of Streets and Sanitation was on the scene cleaning up at 10 p.m., there were still limbs hanging high up in the trees that still could come down at some point Wednesday night.

The trunk of one tree came right down onto one car.

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No one was reported injured, but Argyle Street was closed between Glenwood Avenue and Broadway.

There were also reports of downed power lines in Downers Grove, and 63rd Street was closed in that western suburb.

In LaSalle County, trees were down on North 39th Road east of the community of Triumph.

There was also concern about power outages.

There were no tornado watches or warnings in the Chicago area late Wednesday. The nearest tornado warnings issued through the evening late Wednesday were in Iowa and later west central Wisconsin.

Back in the Chicago area, temperatures will fall to the low 40s by daybreak with wind gusts decreasing to 35 to 45 miles per hour.

It will be mostly sunny and windy for Thursday afternoon with highs in the mid-40s. Wind gusts of 40 miles per hour are likely.

On Friday, it will be partly cloudy with highs in the low 40s.

A passing snow flurry is possible early Saturday morning, then mostly cloudy and chilly on Saturday afternoon with highs in the upper 30s.

TONIGHT: A High Wind Warning is in effect until 9am. Very windy with a chance for showers and thunderstorms. Low 40s.
THURSDAY: Mostly sunny and breezy. High 45, falling temps in the afternoon.
FRIDAY: Partly cloudy. High 40.

Source: ChicagoCBS