Chicago – Lollapalooza starts today, and the music festival always makes for one of the most exciting weekends of the year for Chicago. Thousands of people flock to Grant Park to watch their favorite bands perform their greatest hits. But Mother Nature usually provides some of her own greatest hits.
This year Lady Gaga and The Strokes headline the show on Friday night, Green Day and Phoenix perform on Saturday night and recently reunited Soundgarden and Arcade Fire close the show on Sunday night. All headliners begin their shows at 8 p.m. on one of Lolla’s two stages.
Mother Nature will also take center stage.
WEATHER
August can bring a whirl of different weather to the Chicago area. Not only does it typically turn hot and humid, but some of our biggest thunderstorms tend to develop this time of the year as well.
This year looks a little different, though. On what has been a very toasty summer thus far, the timing of Lollapalooza couldn’t have come at a better time. That’s because a cold front came through early Thursday morning and brought about a very refreshing, cooler change to the region. Both Friday and Saturday appear to be about as picture-perfect as you’re going to get for this time of year — with sunshine and pleasant temperatures. Expected highs on both days will top out in the low- to mid-80s.
With that said, it is still August and the sun can be quite draining at times. So here are a few things to remember if you’re going to be in the sun for a long duration of time:
1. Stay hydrated (water or Gatorade).
2. Apply sunscreen. The rays of the sun are still very direct this time of the year and sunburn can develop within 20 minutes.
3. Find areas of shade to take breaks from the sun.
Sunday looks to turn hotter and a little more humid with high temperatures approaching 90 degrees. So that would be the day where the most uncomfortable weather would occur if we were in fact to climb that high.
So stay safe out there and enjoy your weekend!
TRAFFIC
Balbo and Jackson are shut down from Lake Shore Drive to Columbus, which happened earlier this week.
Columbus from Roosevelt to Monroe was shut down late Thursday night.
All of the closures will be in effect until Monday until approximately noon.
Originally reported by FOX News Chicago. Read the original article here.