Calm winds and high humidity this morning with a few power transformers blown this morning (locally near Palatine and Arlington Heights Road).
The greatest chance for thunderstorms today is between 12:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. About one inch of rain possible between 12:30 p.m. Thursday and 6:30 a.m. Friday morning. Some thunderstorms could be heavy with gusts in excess of 60 mph, frequent cloud-to-ground lightning and hail. A less than 2 percent risk of an isolated small tornado is indicated by the National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center. Radar currently indicates small areas of storms northwest of Rockford and near Peoria moving from southwest to northeast.
First Communion Day Saturday is forecast to bring southeast winds of about 15 mph starting at about noon through 6:30 p.m. with gusts to 24 mph. Chance of rain is about 28 percent between 6:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Cloud cover for the day is expected to be about 50 percent (Arlingtoncardinal.com/weather).
TODAY
A slight chance of showers before 10am, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms between 10am and 1pm, then showers and possibly a thunderstorm after 1pm. High near 69. Light south southeast wind becoming east 5 to 10 mph in the morning. Winds could gust as high as 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
Tonight
Showers and possibly a thunderstorm. Low around 47. East wind 10 to 15 mph becoming north after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible.
Friday
A 40 percent chance of showers, mainly before 1pm. Cloudy, with a high near 56. North wind around 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
Friday Night
Partly cloudy, with a low around 44. Northeast wind 5 to 10 mph becoming west northwest after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 15 mph.
Saturday (First Communion Day)
A 30 percent chance of showers before 1pm. Mostly sunny, with a high near 61. Northwest wind 5 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph.
Saturday Night
Mostly clear, with a low around 40.
Become a fan of The Cardinal weather page. Submit your pictures or just stay up-to-date on weather topics — go direct to the Arlington Cardinal Weather photos. For a list of all of The Cardinal Facebook fan pages, go to Arlingtoncardinal.com/about/facebook …