Watch CBS News

More Sweltering Heat, Storms For New Work Week

CHICAGO (CBS) -- If you're sick and tired of the heat and storms, you won't be too thrilled with the weather for the beginning of this work week.

The heat Monday and Tuesday won't be as unbearable as the area saw late last month. But CBS 2 Meteorologist Mary Kay Kleist says the high for the afternoon is 91 degrees, with a heat index making it feel like it's 103.

A heat advisory is in effect until 8 p.m. for downstate, west and northwest Illinois, but not for the Chicago area.

However, an air quality alert has been issued for the entire six-county Chicago area, as well as Kendall and Grundy counties to the southwest, as ozone and particulate levels are expected to exceed the level beyond which they are considered unhealthy.

The air quality alert is in effect through Monday night. Officials advise you not to do anything strenuous if you have asthma or another condition that affects your respiration, and maybe wait until another day to cut your grass.

When the White Sox take on the New York Yankees at 7:10 p.m. at U.S. Cellular Field, the temperature is expected to be 84 degrees. The heat will also still be hovering when Paul McCartney begins his second concert at Wrigley Field at 8 p.m.

As the day presses on, Kleist says there is about a 20 percent chance of a stray afternoon storm. Come the nighttime hours, the lows drop only to 75.

On Tuesday, the high jumps to 94 degrees. But when the evening rush comes around, showers and thunderstorms are expected. There is a slight risk for severe weather in the afternoon and evening Tuesday, and localized flooding is expected.

So why has it been so hot in recent days?

Kleist says the jet stream is hovering to the north, cutting through northern Wisconsin, and keeping conditions hot and sweltering everywhere to its south. That pattern is locked in place for Monday and Tuesday.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.