Cooler Temps And Rain Appear But Precip Still Subnormal

Storms behind a weak cold front late Wednesday brought anywhere from half an inch to almost an inch of much- needed rain to the area but climatologists reported that still leaves the year's total precipitation 20 to 25 percent below normal.

Wednesday night's storms included moderately high winds that knocked out power in some areas.  ComEd reported nearly 70,000 homes without power after they'd gone through.  By early this morning the company reported only 4 downed lines in Algonquin affecting 13 homes, 4 in LITH affecting 10 homes and 2 in Huntley with 9 homes dark.  To the north, almost 800 homes in the Lakewood area were reported without power, though.

National Weather Service forecasters predicted seasonable temperatures for the next several days with  a vague chance of more rain around the weekend. They said they expected hot and dry weather to return next week, though.

In the pic:  ComEd still reported unrepaired outages this morning from Wednesday night's storms.