Severe thunderstorm watch issued Sunday for northern Illinois

Northern Illinois is expected to see some thunderstorms later Sunday evening, followed by scorching temperatures later in the week.

The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm watch for northern Illinois about 2:15 p.m. Sunday, set to last until 8:00 p.m.

Storms were making their way into Illinois early Sunday afternoon. Severe wind gusts have been measured by the Mississippi River, and Brett Borchardt, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said there had been reports of 60-plus mph gusts in Moline and Davenport, Iowa.

Borchardt said the storms should be making their way to Rochelle by about 3:30 p.m. Sunday and DeKalb by about 3:45 p.m. He added the storms should reach the McHenry and Lake county region by about 5 to 7 p.m.

Borchardt said the thunderstorms “may pack a punch” with high winds and heavy rain.

The storm comes as the Chicago area is under an Air Quality Alert, scheduled to last through Monday evening. The alert includes Kane, Kendall, Will, Grundy and McHenry counties, and indicates air quality will be at the “Unhealthy for sensitive groups” category through Monday. While the air quality alert appears on the National Weather Service website, Borchardt said air quality alerts aren’t something the National Weather Service forecasts.

Following the storms Sunday, high temperatures are expected to climb and remain above 90 degrees this week for much of northern Illinois. Borchardt said it will be the first very hot temperatures of the season and to monitor for heat-related illnesses, but it will fall just short of heat warnings.

“It’s [going to] be hot, don’t get me wrong,” Borchardt said.

Borchardt added a heat advisory is issued when heat indices are above 105 degrees and heat warnings are issued when heat indices are above 110 degrees.