# Morning storms slam Chicago airports with nearly 1,000 delays

> Thunderstorms dumped up to 3 inches of rain across the Chicago area Thursday, forcing ground stops and causing massive flight disruptions.
- Title: Morning storms slam Chicago airports with nearly 1,000 delays
- Summary: Thunderstorms dumped up to 3 inches of rain across the Chicago area Thursday, forcing ground stops and causing massive flight disruptions. Early morning…
- Keywords: chicago, o'hare airport, midway airport, thunderstorms, flight delays, rainfall, weather, ground stops, federal aviation administration, national weather service, news, local
- Source: Chicago Sun-Times — https://chicago.suntimes.com/weather/2026/09/17/morning-storms-blamed-for-nearly-1-000-delays-at-chicago-airports
- Published: 2026-09-17T14:43:23.045+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: chicago, o'hare airport, midway airport, thunderstorms, flight delays, rainfall, weather, ground stops, federal aviation administration, national weather service, news, local
## Storms hit Chicago Thursday morning
Early morning thunderstorms caused ground stops at O'Hare and Midway airports, with heavy rain falling across the Chicago area.
## Heaviest rain in a month
One to three inches of rain fell throughout Chicago, with Aurora receiving about 3 inches and Romeoville getting 2 inches. This was the most rain the area had seen in a month.

> the most rain we've seen in a month
## Airport rainfall totals
O'Hare received about seven-tenths of an inch while Midway saw 1.6 inches of rain during the morning storms.
## Nearly 1,000 flights affected
By 9:25 a.m., O'Hare had 159 canceled flights and over 800 delayed. Midway reported over 25 cancellations and more than 135 delays.
## Two-hour average delays
Ground stops were lifted early Thursday morning, but flights continued moving with an average delay of over two hours, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
## Flood advisory issued
A flood advisory was in effect for the Chicago metro area until 10:30 a.m. as the heaviest rain passed through the region.
## Spotty showers continue
Meteorologist Brett Borchardt said some spotty showers and storms would continue through the morning, but the rest of the day would be largely dry.

> We are still going to have some spotty showers and storms through the next few hours across the morning, but otherwise we are looking at a largely dry rest of the day
## Road safety warning
Borchardt urged commuters to avoid driving through flooded intersections and roads, warning that water depth is unknown and conditions remain slippery.

> If [you] do come upon an intersection or road that is flooded over, [you] just never want to drive through that since we don't know how deep it is
## More rain expected Friday
The Chicago area will experience dry conditions through Friday before rainfall returns Friday night into early Saturday morning.
## Key takeaway

Early morning thunderstorms caused nearly 1,000 flight delays and cancellations at Chicago's two major airports, with some areas receiving the heaviest rainfall in a month.