Yahoo News As wind chills drop to dangerous lows of minus 26 degrees in Chicago, 2 men take their own plunge in Lake Michigan
Dangerously cold conditions continued throughout the Chicago area Tuesday morning, with the wind chill reaching as low as minus 26 degrees, but it didn’t deter two Chicago men from their routine of jumping into Lake Michigan.
Dan O’Conor wouldn’t let subzero temperatures end his more than 1,200-day jump streak. He started the daily ritual during the COVID-19 pandemic as a stress reliever, and he has no plans to stop anytime soon.
“I found a lot of positivity, and it’s an endorphin rush,” the 56-year-old said. “In the cold, you really get this rush. It’s a shocking act, and your body realizes that ‘Hey, I gotta protect this vessel I’m in.’”
The National Weather Service predicts that the bitterly cold temperatures will continue through Wednesday morning. A wind chill warning in portions of central, north central and northeast Illinois remains in effect until 9 a.m. Wednesday. The lowest wind chills will be at night and during the morning.
As the sun rose over the city’s skyline Tuesday, O’Conor and his friend Glenn Rischke scouted out the best spot to jump in the water at Montrose Harbor. It’s important not to hit ice, they said, to prevent painful cuts.
The men stripped down to swim trunks, discarding their bulky winter jackets — O’Conor’s adorned with his nickname “Great Lake Jumper” in rainbow colors. O’Conor went first, getting a running start before flipping into the water, and Rischke followed.
They floated in the water for about a minute — joking that it felt like they’re in Iceland — before climbing out and speed-walking to the warmth of their car.
“I started for my mental health,” Rischke said. “I don’t know how to describe it, but everything seems a little less heavy.”
Avoid outdoor activities if possible
Rafal Ogorek, a meteorologist with the weather service in Romeoville, said while Tuesday probably isn’t quite as frigid as the past two days, it’s still very cold. Tuesday’s forecast was mostly sunny with a night near 4 degrees in Chicago. Wind speeds of 20 mph are expected in the afternoon, with gusts up to 30 mph.
“Temperatures this morning are still below zero, but this afternoon they should get above zero in the metro,” Ogorek said. “We’re looking at another night of temperatures being around zero with below zero wind chills tonight, but tomorrow we’re expecting slightly milder temperatures.”
Ogorek said Wednesday’s high temperatures are expected to hover around the upper teens to low 20s, with the wind child reaching above zero for the first time in days. The freezing air mass is the coldest Chicago has seen in five years, with the last comparable cold snap in January 2019.
Cold wind chills can cause frostbite on exposed skin in as little as 30 minutes, the weather service said. It recommends avoiding outdoor activities if possible, and wearing appropriate clothing if venturing outside.
Due to the freezing temperatures and wind chills, Chicago Public Schools canceled classes and after-school activities Tuesday. Schools are expected to reopen Wednesday. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson also announced that the enforcement of his 60-day migrant shelter limit policy would be delayed until at least Jan. 22.
The cold temperatures coincided with a number of train delays. Red Line trains ran with delays Tuesday morning due to mechanical problems. The 54th/Cermak-bound Pink Line trains also ran with delays due to track switching problems near Central Park, and the Yellow Line was temporarily suspended due to signal problems. The Yellow Line reopened earlier this month after months of closure following a Nov. 16 crash on the tracks.
Subzero temperatures — particularly for a prolonged period — can impact railroad equipment and other transit mechanical equipment, including cracked rails and damaged door sensors, leading to delays while repairs are made, according to Manny Gonzales, a spokesperson for the Chicago Transit Authority.
”Despite the extreme weather, CTA workers are braving the elements to make speedy repairs and keep trains and buses running through this severe weather event,” Gonzales said. “The prolonged, extreme temperatures have created some issues and delays throughout our systems, but CTA crews have worked to address them quickly and safely.”
At O’Hare International Airport, 202 flights were canceled and 531 were delayed as of Tuesday afternoon, according to flight tracking service FlightAware. Another 98 flights were canceled at Midway Airport and 83 were delayed.
Calls for more warming spaces
The lingering cold snap prompted activists Tuesday to criticize the city for not offering enough warming options for homeless people.
Members of the progressive community organization People’s Response Network at a news conference Tuesday accused the city of failing to open enough drop-in warming centers for homeless Chicagoans who prefer the centers rather than shelters during cold snaps, activists said.
The city operates overnight warming centers at the Harold Washington Library and at a Lincoln Park community center, while another site is open for youth in Back of the Yards. Another daytime warming center in Garfield Park has been kept open to people needing shelter placement at night, but is otherwise only open outside of daytime business hours for “time-limited warming,” OEMC spokesperson Mary May said.
The distinction drew criticism from activist Dr. Howard Ehrman at the news conference, who said “people could just walk in and get warm” at the facility in the past.
“Why did they change the hours?” he asked.
The city also operates daytime warming areas at libraries and six community centers. Most city-funded shelters are also open all day, some with hours expanded for the weather, May said.
The Department of Family and Support Services has also ramped up outreach to homeless Chicagoans encouraging them to seek shelter or warming, May added.
Since the cold stretch began, there have been four “cold-related” deaths in Cook County, according to the medical examiner’s office. The deaths include an 81-year-old man who died Friday in the South Shore neighborhood.
No city-run, 24-hour warming centers are operating “anywhere near us” in South Shore, said neighborhood resident and activist Loren Taylor. The city relies too heavily on its central downtown library, he said.
“Over-centralization has not worked,” he said.
Ehrman and Taylor called for Johnson to strip the Office of Emergency Management and Communications of its powers in responding to the cold front and other weather crises, such as heat waves.
The activists called for other city agencies to instead lead response efforts. They advocated for Chicago Transit Authority warming buses to be more widely used during cold fronts and for the city’s health department to play a larger role in handling crises with a heightened focus on public health.
Snow possible Wednesday
Cold temperatures aren’t the only weather condition Chicagoans might face this week. There’s about a 20% to 40% chance of snow in northern Illinois and northwest Indiana starting Wednesday afternoon into Thursday morning. Travel could be affected, Ogorek said, including the Wednesday evening commute.
More widespread snow is likely Thursday night into Friday morning. The bitterly cold temperatures are also expected to return Friday into the start of the weekend, the weather service said.
Cold temperatures also lead to ice formation on rivers, leading to ice jams and possible flooding, the weather service warned. Ice jams can cause water level fluctuations and significant water rises with little to no warning. The weather service said one ice jam had already developed on the Kankakee River near Wilmington.
Tulips grow in Englewood
Amid the freezing weather, a somewhat unconventional business for the season is in full bloom. A group of young adults in Englewood are busy growing tulips in anticipation of flower-gifting holidays, including Valentine’s Day and even Mother’s Day, which may seem far into the future from this week’s wintry grip.
Southside Blooms, a nonprofit founded in 2014 to help give at-risk youth economic opportunities through urban farming, runs a solar-powered indoor tulip farm in the basement of their Englewood headquarters. Solar panels on the roof allow them to grow about 6,000 tulips at a time in their “grow room,” according to co-founder Quilen Blackwell.
Blackwell said from January through Mother’s Day they’ll grow about 30,000 tulips. He said they have about 12 varieties, including his wife’s favorite, double tulips, which have ruffled petals that resemble a peony. Blackwell’s favorite is fringed tulips, which he said look like a “little snow cap” with edges on the petals.
The nonprofit has about 20 young adults ranging in age from 16 to 27 on their payroll, Blackwell said. They work inside in the winter, helping cultivate and sell the flowers, he said.
“With Valentine’s Day coming up, a lot of people are going to be buying roses, and tulips are an alternative that most people don’t think about,” Blackwell said. “We have bright red tulips, we have pink tulips, all the colors that you get in roses, we have as tulips, except for our tulips are being grown in a solar powered grow room.”
