National Weather Service Chicago Sees Record Year for Tornadoes

In an overview of the year just ended, the National Weather Service Chicago office says there were a record number of tornadoes in its forecast area in 2023. The list includes tornadoes in Northwest Indiana — in Merrillville and in the Shorewood Forest area near Valparaiso during the historic March 31st outbreak. Meteorologists say there were a total of 58 across the National Weather Service Chicago forecast area last year, the most in a calendar year since official record-keeping began in 1950. The National Weather Service also says 2023 was also the first year in which tornadoes occurred in the months of January, February, and March of the same year in the Chicago forecast area; meanwhile, there were none in the Northwest Indiana-Chicago area in June, typically one of the most active months for severe weather and tornadoes locally, the weather service said. Here is a link to the National Weather Service Chicago website for more details.