Updated

Updated · Chicago Tribune · Jun 11

Mumford & Sons Delays Wrigley Show to 10 p.m. as Storm Threat Postpones Jimmy Eat World

Updated

Updated · Chicago Tribune · Jun 11

Mumford & Sons Delays Wrigley Show to 10 p.m. as Storm Threat Postpones Jimmy Eat World

Q: Are outdoor storm sirens still effective for warning people in a modern, indoor city?

Outdoor storm sirens are still useful, but mainly for people who are outside; they are not a reliable primary warning system for people indoors in a modern city. That matches how emergency managers and the National Weather Service describe them. In the Chicago area, sirens are typically triggered automatically for tornado warnings or severe thunderstorm warnings with very high winds. Their purpose is to tell people outdoors to get inside and seek more information. They are not designed to be clearly heard inside homes, offices, transit stations, or large venues, where insulation, air conditioning, traffic, and city noise can drown them out. That matters in a city like Chicago, where most people are indoors when warnings are issued. During Thursday’s severe weather threat, with tornadoes, large hail and winds up to 80 mph possible, the more dependable indoor alerts were phone-based warnings, NOAA Weather Radio, and live local TV and radio coverage. Those systems provide details sirens cannot: what the threat is, where it is moving, and how urgent it is. Experts generally favor a layered system. Sirens still have value in parks, festivals, lakefront areas and other outdoor spaces, especially during fast-moving storms. But for an indoor city, they work best as a backup, not the backbone. The practical advice is to keep Wireless Emergency Alerts enabled, use a weather app or NOAA radio, and know where to shelter before storms arrive.

2 articles · Updated · Chicago Tribune · Jun 11

Wrigley Field pushed Thursday’s Mumford & Sons concert start to 10 p.m. and delayed gates to 8:30 p.m., scrapping opening sets by Caamp and Dylan Gossett.
A tornado watch covering 51 Illinois counties, including Cook County, was expanded Thursday as forecasters warned of possible tornadoes, tennis-ball-size hail and wind gusts up to 80 mph.
Across Chicago, Jimmy Eat World’s show at Huntington Bank Pavilion was postponed to Aug. 20; tickets remain valid and the original lineup will stay intact.
The weather disruptions also hit other city events, with Humboldt Park’s 45th Annual Fiestas Patronales Puertorriqueñas delaying its opening until 3 p.m. Friday.