Heat Dome Could Ignite Storms and Derechos Over Illinois Soon

It looks like the weather pattern over Illinois is about to get excitable again. A new forecast says the incoming heat dome which will cause temperatures to spike into the 90's is expected to ignite a storm pattern that could even include derechos in parts of the Land of Lincoln.

This new weather outlook just shared by Accuweather says that rounds of severe storms are expected to begin later this weekend. This is the graphic just shared by Accuweather showing the pattern which will begin Saturday, July 13 and continue through Tuesday, July 16.

Northern Illinois looks to be in the most danger for storms Saturday and Sunday night while almost the entire state could see thunderstorm activity on Monday. The Accuweather models claim that some areas could see up to 85 mph wind gusts. Yikes.

While they mention the derecho possibility, they also note that it's impossible to truly forecast a derecho as no warnings are issued until a system has already formed and displayed that capability.

My takeaway from what Accuweather said is just be aware that Illinois could see severe weather daily for the next several days. Whether it reaches derecho intensity remains to be seen, but know that you need to be aware of severe weather and anticipate taking action if warnings are issued by the National Weather Service.