CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – JULY 19: A visitor cools off in Crown Fountain in downtown as temperatures are forecast to head into the mid to high 90’s with a heat index of around 115 degrees on July 19, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. The heat wave gripping the city is affecting nearly two-thirds of the United states where more than 195 million people will experience temperatures above 90 degrees over the next few days. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
The city of Chicago officially broke a temperature record on Monday afternoon as scorching heat continues to grip the area.
According to the National Weather Service, the temperature at O’Hare International Airport reached 97 degrees, breaking a record that had stood for nearly 70 years.
The previous record was set on this date in 1957, according to officials.
The heat index was only 98 degrees, as the humidity has plummeted throughout the afternoon after earlier showers and thunderstorms, according to the weather service.
Chicago also came just short of breaking another record, as the low temperature on Monday only reached 77 degrees. That is one degree cooler than the 78 degrees that the low settled on this date in 2018, according to officials.
If Chicago is hoping to break any additional records this week, the heat will have to intensify. The record for Tuesday’s date is 98 degrees, while records on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday all sit in the triple digits.
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