A tornado watch has been issued in Kenosha County, with the rest of the Chicago area under a severe thunderstorm watch.
According to the National Weather Service, most of Wisconsin is under the tornado watch until 6 p.m., with showers and storms already firing up in the western part of the state.
The National Weather Service also issued a severe thunderstorm watch for all of northern Illinois, including the city of Chicago, until 8 p.m.
McHenry, Lake, DeKalb, Kane, DuPage, Cook, LaSalle, Kendall, Grundy, Will and Kankakee counties are all included in the watch, as are Lake, Porter, Newton and Jasper counties in northwest Indiana.
Here are the latest alerts:
-A severe thunderstorm warning is in effect for all of Cook County, including Chicago, until 4:15 p.m.
A line of storms stretching from Carol Stream to Willowbrook to New Lenox is moving east at 35 miles per hour toward the city, according to officials.
These storms have caused wind damage in DuPage County, and have had measured wind gusts of up to 65 miles per hour, according to the warning.
-A severe thunderstorm warning remains in effect for southeastern Grundy County until 4 p.m.
As of 3:30 p.m., a severe storm located near Gardner was moving east at 35 miles per hour, producing wind gusts in excess of 60 miles per hour.
-All of Lake and Porter counties in Indiana are under a severe thunderstorm warning until 5:15 p.m., according to the National Weather Service.
Wind gusts in excess of 60 miles per hour are possible, along with penny-size hail. The storms are on a line from South Deering to Dyer and into Lowell, moving east at 55 miles per hour.
The Storm Prediction Center has most of the Chicago area at a “slight” risk of storms, the second of five forecasted levels. The main threats with any storms that develop would be gusty winds, which could occur in excess of 60-to-70 miles per hour, according to forecast models.
A non-zero tornado risk is also in play for most of the area, and parts of the western suburbs could see damaging hail as well, according to the SPC.
The arrival time of those storms could occur in the late afternoon and early evening hours, just before the evening rush hour, according to the National Weather Service. Torrential rains are also possible, which could lead to localized flooding at times.
Once the low-pressure system moves out of the area, the Chicago area will see cooler temperatures and lower humidity on Thursday, with highs only expected to reach the mid-to-upper 70s, according to the NBC 5 Storm Team.
