Cooling centers and splash pads are open to help people cope with oppressive heat that will feel like 115 degrees.
OEMC
City officials shared the latest plans for road closures, detours and alternate routes in advance of the upcoming NASCAR Street Race, and it’s going to be a bumpy ride for commuters.
City and race officials on Monday detailed their traffic plans for the July 2 race, which will include a 12-turn, 2.2-mile track that will close off several streets around Grant Park from June 25 into mid-July.
Chicago police and firefighters swarmed City Hall for several hours Friday during a training that aimed to “enhance preparedness and strengthen capabilities” across city departments “during and following an active threat or terrorism.”
Chicago’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications and the Chicago Police Department say they’ve coordinated with Willie Wilson and his staff, and will provide city resources “to mitigate traffic conditions and ensure public safety.”
Safety officials are reminding Chicagoans that even if it still feels like summer, the lakefront’s beaches are now closed for the season to swimming, with lifeguards no longer present along the shoreline. So far in 2021, 38 people have drowned in Lake Michigan.
Chicagoans in the Beverly and Morgan Park neighborhoods are under a water boil order possibly until Friday, following a service disruption at the Roseland Pumping Station.
As Chicago digs out from yet another major snowfall, with accumulation piling on top of previous storm totals, the Department of Streets and Sanitation is activating its plan to relocate snow to pre-determined sites. Plows could shift to residential streets Tuesday evening, officials said.
It’s been 10 years since the infamous Groundhog Day blizzard left hundreds of motorists stranded on Lake Shore Drive. As another major winter storm bears down on Chicago, officials are putting to use lessons learned from that debacle.
City officials are taking precautions ahead of potential unrest, though they're not aware of any "actionable activity" being planned in Chicago on Inauguration Day.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot has repeatedly said she’s not in favor of defunding the Chicago Police Department, but with position reductions, budget cuts and investments in a new pilot program, the city may be rethinking the way policing will work.
The agency charged with investigating allegations of police misconduct has failed to promptly release video and audio recordings of use-of-force incidents, as required by city law, according to a new audit by Chicago’s watchdog.
Police Superintendent David Brown said the so-called “tabletop exercises” involved officers responding to hypothetical looting reports to test the effectiveness and quickness of their response.
“The unintended effect may be that people will feel less safe,” Alicia Tate-Nadeau, former brigadier general of the guard, said of deploying troops to Chicago. “It could stigmatize areas of the city for years to come.”
The city is directing residents without air conditioning to its cooling centers and park district splash pads and renewing calls for people to check in on elderly and vulnerable family members, friends and neighbors.
Chicago police Superintendent David Brown said officers will be “visible and present” in neighborhoods throughout the summer and will be “on the lookout” for large gatherings.
