The temperature at O’Hare Airport reached 98 degrees Wednesday afternoon, breaking Chicago’s previous daily high temperature record for Aug. 23 of 97 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.
The previous record was set in 1947.
The heat and humidity made it feel like 116 degrees in some parts of Chicago — just 2 degrees shy of the highest heat index ever recorded in the city in 1995, according to the weather service. The heat index is a measure of what the temperature feels like when factoring in humidity.
. This hour, #Chicago-O'Hare has been as warm as 96°. Dew point was at 80° but has dropped to 77°. While temp. was at 96° with dew point of 80°, heat index was up at 116°, tying July 14, 1995 for 2nd highest heat index on record for the city of Chicago's climate site. #ILwx (1/2)
— NWS Chicago (@NWSChicago) August 23, 2023
An excessive heat warning is in effect for much of northern Illinois until 8 p.m. Thursday. The temperature is expected to again climb into the upper 90s on Thursday, according to the weather service. The heat index could also reach 115 degrees on Thursday.
Chicagoans try to beat the heat
As temperatures soared to near 100 degrees at 31st Street Beach, a high school sophomore sold snow cones to raise money for college and help people manage the heat. Nearby, a man hunkered his chair into the wet sand at the edge of the lake to keep his feet cool.
Crystal Sargent, a mother of four, promised her kids a beach day Wednesday as “one last sun dance before school starts” next week in south suburban Hazel Crest.
Sargent wasn’t aware of the heat advisories issued throughout the area, but she came prepared with extra water, juice, snacks and sandwiches, anyway.
Martize Dellinger used his day off work Wednesday to bask in the sun at the beach.
Martize Dellinger wears a towel on his head to keep himself cool at 31st Street Beach on Wednesday. “It’s bad but it’s not that bad,” Dellinger said, after applying sunscreen and placing the towel over his head.
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
“I suppose if it gets too hot, then I’ll go dip [in the water] and come back. I’ll go back and forth, but mostly this is my spot,” he said, pointing to his chair.
Inside the Garfield Community Service Center, 63-year-old retiree Ricardo Davis was looking to keep cool — and to get information about housing.
“This is a place to be sheltered during the day,” Davis said of the 24/7 center at 10 S. Kedzie Ave., “but you’ll never be comfortable because you’re sleeping and being around strangers. It’s really not safe.”
Davis, who is living in a nearby shelter run by Franciscan Outreach, said he always comes to cooling centers during heat emergencies because of his housing insecurity. He said he has been applying for rental assistance programs to no avail and his current shelter was damaged by recent record flooding.
Ricardo Davis tries to escape the heat Wednesday at the Garfield Community Service Center. He said he always comes to cooling centers during heat emergencies because of his housing insecurity.
Anthony Vasquez/Sun-Times
“I’ve been coming here every month for about two years now to sign up,” Davis said. “But since the COVID-19 and now the flooding, it’s like going on a merry-go-round. Plus, I have no transit assistance, so it’s even harder to make these trips here.”
Downtown, kids — and even some adults — kicked off their shoes and ran through the waterfalls at Crown Fountain in Millennium Park. Some were lying flatly in the large puddle and waving their arms and legs like snow angels.
James Anderson was with his wife and 2-year-old daughter, visiting the park on their last day of vacation from Northern Ireland, where they have never experienced such heat or humidity.
“It wouldn’t get this hot at all,” said Anderson, noting their summers reach Fahrenheit temperatures in the mid-80s.
“It’s really humid, but it’s a really nice change for us,” Anderson said. “Although it’s really hot, it slows you down so you basically have to just roll with it and not do anything too fast. If you sit down, you’re not getting up right away.”
‘The heat can be stressful’
The heat is nothing new for Freddy Caripa and his wife, Maria. Temperatures during the summer season in their home country of Venezuela regularly break 90 degrees.
But their daughter, also named Maria, is just over 1 year old and doesn’t have much experience coping with the scorching temperatures affecting Chicago on Wednesday, the couple said.
“Since we come from a hot country, this is normal for us. Where we live, it’s like this often,” said Caripa, 27. “But she gets frustrated by how hot it is. She isn’t used to it.”
The family and over a dozen other asylum-seekers staying at the 18th District Police Station in River North found relief from the oven-like temps by lounging under the shade of the building.
Maria Caripa holds her 1-year-old daughter, Maria, next to her husband, Freddy Caripa, outside the 18th District police station on Wednesday.
Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times
Over 100 asylum-seekers are staying at the police station, including several children, an employee said.
It’s air-conditioned, but asylum-seekers staying there have been told not to linger inside during the day so officers can do their jobs, according to several migrants.
Jesus Bravo, 35, said he’s glad school started so his 9-year-old son can be in an air-conditioned classroom instead of outside the police station with him.
“If he were here, we would have probably gone to the lake,” Bravo said. “If it stays like this tomorrow, we might go there so he can be cooler and more comfortable. The heat can be stressful.”
School district works to ensure students stay cool
Meanwhile, Chicago Public Schools took advanced precautions when it postponed all outdoor games scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday. The district also said all practices must be canceled or moved indoors.
CPS officials said all classrooms have air conditioning, but not all libraries, gyms or cafeterias. The school district has 225 air conditioners in stock to replace broken units, officials said, and 400,000 bottles of water available to give students and staff who work outdoors, such as Safe Passage workers, crossing guards and bus aides.
City officials and the National Weather Service continued to share advice to residents on social media channels. To stay safe in the heat, the National Weather Service suggests drinking lots of water, staying out of the sun and staying in an air-conditioned room. For those who must be outside, wear light and loose-fitting clothing and take frequent breaks.
“If you’re particularly feeling a headache, confusion, excessive sweating, your body temperature is getting red and sloshy, and you feel like you’re going to pass out, don’t wait,” said Dr. Javier Guevara, an emergency room physician at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. “Call for help. Call 911, go to a cooling center, lay down, drink water and rest.”
In addition to the city’s cooling centers, Chicago public libraries can also offer relief during operating hours, according to the Office of Emergency Management and Communication.
Cooler weather is expected to move into the area for the weekend, with highs in the mid-70s Friday through Sunday.
