A blistering Monday in Chicago brought a new record high temperature of 97 degrees for June 17, breaking the previous record by one degree as a heatwave forecast to last through the week bears down on the city.
National Weather Service meteorologist Brett Borchardt said the record high occurred at O’Hare Airport around 3:16 p.m. and only lasted a few minutes.
“We had some clouds that moved over the airport and that cooled the temperature a few degrees and that’s all it took,” he said.
The city reached its preceding June 17 record of 96 degrees in 1887 and 1957, Borchardt said.
The forecast remains scorching for the rest of the week, he said, although areas by Lake Michigan are expected to be slightly cooler Thursday and Friday.
Zachary Yack, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service of Chicago, said highs will “top out in the low to mid-90s throughout much of this upcoming week. And with those humidity values, that will probably push heat indices in that 95 to 105-degree temperature range.”
As the temperature in Chicago hangs in the 90s, people bike and walk on The 606 trail at Damen Avenue on June 17, 2024. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)
People avoid the sun while walking along the Chicago River with temperatures in the 90s, June 17, 2024. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
People sit in the hot sun at the Juneteenth flag raising ceremony at Daley Plaza, June 17, 2024. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)
People walk along Wacker Drive while a temperature sign reads 93 degrees, June 17, 2024. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
Jack Scott of Chicago sketches landscapes while cooling in a hammock near the lake at Belmont Harbor, June 17, 2024. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)
People dine on the Chicago Riverwalk with temperatures in the 90s on June 17, 2024. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
Karter Vaughters, 4, splashes his brother Joshua, 9, while they play at Humboldt Park Beach on June 16, 2024, with temperatures over 90 degrees. Chicago’s only inland beach officially reopens Monday after a four-year closure. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
People stick to the shade to relax at Humboldt Park on June 16, 2024, with temperatures over 90 degrees. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
People climb on the lifeguard stand at Humboldt Park Beach on June 16, 2024, with temperatures over 90 degrees. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
People play in the water at Humboldt Park Beach, June 16, 2024. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
Karter Vaughters, 4, gets splashed by his brother Joshua while they play at Humboldt Park Beach, June 16, 2024, with temperatures over 90 degrees. Chicago’s only inland beach officially reopens Monday after a four-year closure. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
Heat indices combine atmospheric temperatures and relative humidity for a realistic measure of how humans experience the weather.
On average, Chicago experiences about four days of 90-degree temperatures in June every year. The city’s longest stretch of 90-degree weather for the month of June occurred seven decades ago — in 1954 — and lasted 11 days.
