Torrential rain delayed Sunday’s NASCAR race in Chicago, Illinois. Photo: Jim Wondruska/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Torrential rain flooded Chicago streets and NASCAR officials were forced to postpone A race in town as the National Weather Service issued hazardous weather Alert For more than 110 million Americans during the extended Fourth of July holiday weekend.
state of play: chicago train Services suspended, buses temporarily halted sent And Illinois State Police said portions of Interstate Highways 55 and 290 were closed due to flooding. WLS TV,
- nws Said After Chicago NASCSR racing resumed, although rain was easing in the city on Sunday evening, “the effects of flooding will persist for several hours”.
- Governor Cathy Hochul in New York said a statement She is monitoring developments in Clinton County, where 12 hours of rain caused “significant flooding,” according to the NWS. noted “Severe thunderstorms and heavy rain” are possible in the state from Monday afternoon to evening.
zoom out: weather service warning Sporadic severe thunderstorms and clusters of thunderstorms could develop across the Mid-Atlantic region and portions of the northern Great Plains Monday through Monday night – which could threaten to disrupt travel for the Fourth of July holiday.
By the numbers: More than 18 million people were under extreme heat warnings Sunday night as dangerously hot weather continued across parts of the Southeast, Gulf Coast, Southwest and interior from California as far north as Oregon.
- It’s especially hot in Sacramento, which is NWS noted On Sunday, July 2, a high of 109 °F was reached, equaling the record high that had stood since 1991.
- record Daily temperatures for July 2 were set in northern California — including Redding (116°F), Red Bluff (114°F), Stockton (110°F) and Modesto (108°F), according to the weather service .
During this, Nevada also saw triple digit temperatures on Sunday.
- “After reaching 110° today, we set a record for shortest time between our first 100° and 110° (2 days),” said the Las Vegas office of the NWS. informed of, “The only other time this happened was in 1955.”
threat level: “The comfortable heat wave will maintain oppressive heat indexes across the entire Southeast and immediate Gulf Coast through Monday before being confined even further south on Independence Day.” nws,
- “The heat index can reach 105-110 degrees, with highs in the mid-90s, which can be dangerous if spending much time outside.”
Context: Climate change is causing extreme rainfall events and heat waves are becoming more intense and frequent.
go deeper: The risks of extreme rainfall are currently underestimated
Editor’s Note: This article has been updated with details on temperatures in Nevada and Northern California.