Last winter was the worst year for cold-related deaths in Cook County in over a decade, with 43.
This year, since November, there have seven cold-related deaths, according to data from the Cook County medical examiner’s office.
Looking at cold-related death data since the winter of 2006-2007, the Chicago Sun-Times found that the county has had at least 247 cold-related deaths, where cold was cited as at least a partial contributor to death.
The ages of the victims ranged from 2 years old to 99.
Here’s what else the data show:
• One in five of the cold-related deaths occurred on days the low temperature was below zero degrees Fahrenheit at O’Hare Airport, based on records at Weather Underground. The coldest day with a death was Jan. 6, 2014, when an 80-year-old man died in Blue Island on a day it hit 16 below zero. Last winter, the coldest day with a death was Jan. 1, when the temperature hit -9.
• About 15 percent of the cold-related deaths occurred on days when the temperature outdoors was above freezing.
• Just over a quarter of the cold-related deaths were also alcohol- or drug-related.
• Hypothermia was cited specifically as a cause in 47 percent of the deaths.
The interactive graphic below shows information on all 247 known cold-related deaths in Cook County since winter 2006-2007.
