Tornadoes, heat and very little snow and ice were all part of what was a wild weather year in 2024 for the Chicago area. One of the most memorable days of the year came on July 15, when 32 tornadoes tore across the National Weather Service (NWS) Chicago forecast area, wreaking havoc from Illinois to Indiana. A
derecho that struck that day helped to set a record for the most tornadoes from a single severe weather event in the 23-county
forecast area . Before that day, there was only one time in recorded history that many tornadoes touched down in an entire year. "The previous record was 58 tornadoes in 2023," said meteorologist, Ricky Castor, at the Chicago NWS. The NWS issues warnings and alerts and also surveys damage after a storm. Last year was busy for the Chicago team, which is based in Romeoville, partly because 2024 was also the warmest on record in Chicago. "Almost four degrees above normal for the year, and that’s records that go back to the 1870s," said Castro. Although summer temperatures were mostly average, the city saw a three-day bout of extreme heat in late August, when the average high temperature was 96 degrees. More concerning to experts, however, was the average nighttime low, which only dropped to 75 degrees.
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While those numbers were startling, the biggest warming trends happened during an unexpected season: winter. "That was really most intense in February, when we were eight to nine degrees above normal," said Trent Ford, the Illinois State Climatologist. "We were mild when we expect to be cold. That, combined with a pretty warm fall, made for a very warm year in Chicago. The warmest on record." A warmer-than-normal winter means there's less risk of extreme cold exposure for the most vulnerable people. However, there are consequences, including enhanced ability for invasive species and insects to breed, including a range of ticks and mosquitoes, which can increase the risk of vector-born disease. It was also a year with extremely low snow totals. Chicago saw a deficit of 16.2 inches for the year, and below average ice concentration on Lake Michigan during months the lake is typically covered with ice. "That means our coastlines are more exposed to erosion and heavy wave action during the wintertime when we have those winter storms," said Ford. Ice acts as a protective barrier and can prevent erosion during the winter, but this past season, despite a lack of ice, barriers and revetments installed beginning in the late 1990s, as part of the
Chicago Shoreline Protection Project , held strong against storms. There are still two reaches, or sections of shoreline, left before the project is complete. "Morgan Shoal and Promontory Point," said Mike Padilla, the project manager for the US Army of Corps of Engineers Chicago. "We have been making progress, but no construction. We have a proposed design for Morgan Shoal, but we are doing the environmental compliance, both historical and NEPA, The National Environmental Policy Act." The Corps is also working, now 30 years later, to reevaluate 12 new sections of shoreline to be reconstructed for resiliency. "We’ve noticed that the periods of time in between high lake level events and low lake level events are getting closer together, said Padilla. The Corps will then present conclusions from its reevaluation study to Congress for authorization and funding for construction in the future. As for 2025, weather experts are predicting another active pattern. "March finished well above average temperature wise. It was also quite windy," said Castro. "And there [have] already [been] multiple severe storm events. We confirmed up to 14 tornadoes in our area so far." The Climate Prediction Center outlooks for the early summer also favor above average temperatures, with drier than average conditions.
