Weather officials warned of very dry and windy conditions Wednesday afternoon hours after “dusty rain” from overnight showers left mud splatters on cars parked outside across the Chicago region.

Officials Wednesday issued a red flag warning, which means conditions will be very dry and windy as the afternoon moves forward, making the area ripe for brush fire spread. The combination of warm, dry and windy will cause fine fuels to dry up by early afternoon, National Weather Service officials said.

The warning includes Cook, DuPage, Will, Kankakee and Lake counties until 8 p.m.

Southwest winds are expected to blow between 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 50 mph, official said. With humidity as low as 20 percent, any fire that develops will catch and spread quickly so outdoor burning is not recommended.

Earlier, showers that began Tuesday night left  .05 to .15 inch of rain across northeastern Illinois. The raindrops were embedded with dust from extensive blowing dust and wildfire smoke and ash from strong winds and extreme fire conditions in central and southern plains, weather officials said.

“(T)he result being ‘dusty rain’ and needing a trip to the car wash,” the National Weather Service Chicago said on X.

Current conditions at O’Hare International Airport are a few clouds and breezy at 61 degrees. Farther south at Midway Airport, conditions are fair at 62 degrees. While high temperatures are expected to reach the low 60s, overnight temperatures are expected in the low 40s.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/18/red-flag-warning-2/