The National Weather Service is warning about strong to severe thunderstorms, capable of producing high wind gusts and hail, starting Wednesday afternoon in Lake and McHenry counties.
A few rounds of thunderstorms are forecast from mid to late Wednesday afternoon through Wednesday evening for portions of northern Illinois.
The first potential threat timeframe will be from 4-9 p.m. Wednesday, mainly near the Wisconsin state line, the NWS said.
The strongest storms could produce wind gusts capable of causing tree damage. Isolated large hail is possible.
Scattered to numerous thunderstorms are likely for areas near and north of Interstate 88 starting at 12 a.m. until 7 a.m. Thursday.
The main severe threat will be wind gusts capable of causing tree damage.
“Localized flash flooding is also a concern, particularly for the overnight thunderstorm threat when thunderstorm coverage is forecast to be highest,” the NWS said.
All thunderstorms during this time will be capable of producing torrential downpours, which could cause localized flash flooding despite parts of far northern Illinois being in a drought.
The NWS recommends residents to have a plan to get indoors quickly when thunderstorms approach and to stay tuned to the latest weather updates.