Chicago is in for a hot and humid start to the week.
Cook County, as well as areas of DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will counties and northwest Indiana, were under a heat advisory Monday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.
The advisory cautioned heat index values of up to 109 degrees. Heat index is a measure of how the body perceives the combination of temperature and humidity, said Scott Lincoln, senior service hydrologist with the National Weather Service in Chicago.
“It may only be in the low 90s, but due to the humidity, your body is affected or perceives it as if it’s in the hundreds,” Lincoln said. “So when we say the heat index is in the hundreds, it’s all a perception to your body and an impact to your health.”
Amid Monday’s heat advisory, which was set to expire at 8 p.m., weather officials recommended drinking plenty of fluids, staying in air-conditioned rooms, staying out of the sun and checking on relatives and neighbors.
Though the advisory was only due to extend through Monday evening, hot and humid conditions were expected to continue through Tuesday, Lincoln said. Forecasts also called for on and off chances of thunderstorms all the way through Wednesday night, Lincoln said.
Monday morning, Rush University Medical Center experienced a temporary loss of air conditioning after a chilled water line in the medical center’s Tower building went down. While the damage was repaired quickly, it created a delay in cooling that affected the HVAC system and other equipment.
Later in the week and into the weekend, temperatures are expected to cool down, with highs dipping down to the upper 70s, Lincoln said.
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