Wind chills could plunge 30 below zero as dangerous Chicago cold snap drags on

Daisy Gabriel shovels snow from her sidewalk in the Little Village neighborhood Saturday afternoon. | Pat Nabong/Sun-Times

High temperatures haven’t cracked 21 degrees in Chicago for eight straight days and counting, putting it among the top 10 longest cold snaps in the city’s history.

It’s still well short of the area’s all-time record of 19 consecutive bitter days in 1899, but the freezing weather isn’t about to give up its frigid grip this weekend, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Rafal Ogorek.

Saturday night was expected to be the second chilliest night during this cold stretch, with temperatures forecasted to dip to minus 5 degrees and wind chill values plummeting as low as minus 30.

“When you’re talking about wind chills that are minus 20, minus 30, that’s when you can get frostbite on exposed skin within 10 to 20 minutes,” Ogorek said. “So we certainly encourage people to stay indoors overnight, and if they can’t, then bundle up.”

And couples may have another excuse to cuddle up Sunday as Chicago could see its coldest Valentine’s Day ever.

The day’s forecasted high of 6 degrees would break the record for the coldest high on Feb. 14, which was set in 1943 when temperatures peaked at 8 degrees, according to meteorologist Lee Carlaw.

“It’s definitely possible that we’re headed there,” he said.

On top of the freezing temperatures, snow continues to pile up across the area. About 2 inches of snow were reported at O’Hare Airport by noon Saturday after the latest round, but the highest snowfall was reported in northwest Indiana with 6 inches, Ogorek said.

The area will see even more snow between Sunday night and Tuesday morning, with the city expected to receive between 2 and 4 inches of snow in that period.

Riley plays in the snow in Lincoln Park on Saturday morning.

Two overnight warming centers in the city will remain open until 5 p.m. Monday at the Garfield Community Service Center, 10 S. Kedzie Ave.; and the Dr. Martin Luther King Community Service Center, 4314 S. Cottage Grove Ave.

Residents can call 311 to locate the closest warming area to them. Locations are also listed on the city’s website.

Select Chicago Public Libraries also will be open as warming centers until Monday, and Chicago Police Department district stations are open 24/7.

A person walks their dog Saturday morning in Lincoln Park.