Chicago weather: Extreme heat warning issued as officials urge residents to take precautions

Evgenia Anastasakos, Chicago Tribune on Jun 29, 2026

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Chicago is preparing for dangerously high temperatures this week, with officials urging residents to take extra precautions.

The National Weather Service issued an extreme heat warning, effective from noon Monday through 10 p.m. Wednesday.

At a Monday news conference led by the Office of Emergency Management and Communications, meteorologist Mike Bardou of the National Weather Service office in Romeoville said the warning was issued in anticipation of three consecutive days with a peak heat index of 100-105 degrees.

“It’s been fairly infrequent that we see a three-day duration of heat like this. We’ve seen it two times since the beginning of 2013 up until this point,” Bardou said.

“The other condition that we’re concerned about is that it’s been relatively cool. A lot of us are acclimated to relatively cooler weather, and this quick change to hot and humid conditions can definitely take its toll on the body,” Bardou added.

Overnight temperatures are expected to stay in the upper 70s to 80s, Bardou said, offering people little time to recover from the sweltering heat.

Other areas of Illinois, including Galesburg, Peoria, Bloomington, Springfield, Decatur and Effingham, are also expected to be hit with extreme heat, according to a state press release.

The Chicago Department of Family and Support Services will be operating cooling centers across the city this week. Park district, public library, police district and city college locations will also be open for residents to cool off during their hours of operation.

The following DFSS community cooling centers will be open through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.:

•Auburn Gresham Center, 1140 W. 79th St.

•Garfield Center, 10 S. Kedzie Ave. (Open until 8 p.m.)

•Martin Luther King Center, 4314 S. Cottage Grove Ave.

•North Area Center, 845 W. Wilson Ave.

•South Chicago Center, 8650 S. Commercial Ave.

•Trina Davila Center, 4312 W. North Ave.

The DFSS will also operate an additional 21 senior centers.

Salvation Army locations across Illinois will also operate as cooling centers this week, including Chicago Freedom Center at 825 North Christiana Ave. (open 24 hours) and Chicago Temple at 1 North Ogden Ave. (open Monday through Thursday, 9:00 a.m. to 4 p.m.).

Officials advised residents to drink plenty of water, stay inside if possible, check on friends and family and call 3-1-1 for city assistance.

In response to the heat wave, Chicago Public Schools announced that all summer programming will be held inside Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this week. CPS also said school leaders will be taking extra precautions to keep classrooms cool and ensure that students stay hydrated.

Angela Green, DFSS commissioner, said the agency sent out robocalls to over 31,000 senior citizens on Friday, offering safety tips ahead of the heat.

Valerie Colletti, senior vice president of distribution operations for ComEd, said at the news conference that the agency has been preparing for the heatwave with increased staffing. She urged customers to report outages as quickly as possible by texting “ADD OUTAGE” to 266-33.

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