Flooding Continues: Road Closures Reported, Rivers Are Rising

MCHENRY COUNTY, IL –Multiple rounds of storms passed over northern Illinois Tuesday afternoon and evening, bringing heavy rain and flooding. Between two and five inches of rains fell over 24 hours across the Chicago area, according to reports. Some of the towns hardest hit by flooding and road closures include Grayslake, Hampshire and Algonquin.

Runoff from Route 72 in Hampshire Tuesday evening turned the road into a river bank, complete with mini rapids, according to media reports. The Hampshire Police Department reported many area roads were underwater Tuesday night. And shared a photo on its Facebook page of a truck that apparently got swept off the roadway by a creek overflowing with water.

Huntley roads also became inundated by water Tuesday. The Huntley Police Department reported water remained on many area roadways as of Wednesday morning. Authorities reminded residents not to drive across flooded roadways and to instead turn around and find an alternate route.

In Grayslake, the heavily-traveled Route 137 between Atkinson and Casey roads was closed during flooding overnight. As of Wednesday morning, the roadway had reopened, but still had four inches of standing water, fire officials reported in a Facebook post.

In Algonquin, over five inches of rain fell overnight. As of Wednesday morning, several local roads were flooded including: Cumberland Parkway near Ryan Parkway, Cumberland at Glacier, Teton Parkway, Woods Creek Lane, Cumberland near Chase Street, Glacier & Glacier Ct., and Applewood at Thorneapple Lane.

Towne Park, Holder Park, and Cornish Park are also closed.

"Please do not drive through water on the road. It is deeper than it looks," according to an Algonquin Police Department Facebook post.

The added rain did not help the already high river levels along the Fox and Des Plaines rivers.

As of late Tuesday night, the Fox River at Algonquin Tailwater had reached 11.8 feet. Flood stage is 9.5 feet. A flood warning will remain in effect until Sunday afternoon and the river is expected to continue to rise to near 11.9 feet by Wednesday morning. The river will fall below flood stage Sunday morning.

In Lake County, where three inches of rain fell over the past 24 hours, the Des Plaines river also rose. The river near Gurnee had reached 9.1 feet as of 6:30 a.m. and flood stage is 7 feet. At 9 feet, water begins to approach some homes in Gurnee, according to the National Weather Service. A flood warning will remain in effect until late Sunday night for that portion of the river.

In Lincolnshire, the river has reached 13.2 feet as of 6:45 a.m. Flood stage is 12.5 feet. The river will continue rising to to near 13.7 feet by Wednesday evening. The river will fall below flood stage early Saturday morning.At 14 feet, water begins to pond on Lincolnshire Drive at Wiltshire Lane. Londonderry Lane is closed between Lincolnshire Drive and 45 Londonberry Lane, according to the National Weather Service.

The Des Plaines River near Russell and Des Plaines also are under a flood warning. More information and updates on river levels can be found on the National Weather Service website.

Meanwhile, a brief tornado has been confirmed in Kane County. The tornado, spotted about four miles southeast of Maple Park, touched down briefly at about 5:32 p.m. Tuesday and kicked up some water in a field, according to a trained spotter report. The tornado only lasted a few seconds and produced no damage, weather officials said Wednesday.

Video footage of the tornado can be viewed above and a photo, shared by storm chaser Adam Lucio, can be viewed below.

Since the tornado was so short-lived and did not cause any damage, it will not be surveyed on Wednesday, weather officials said. Meanwhile, a storm survey will be conducted Wednesday on a tornado that touched down in Will County Tuesday night near Manhattan. Several buildings were damaged and a number of trees and power lines were down Tuesday night after the tornado flew through the Manhattan-area. The tornado made a brief touchdown near Wilton Center just before 7 p.m. Despite touching down for nearly a minute, no injuries were reported by Manhattan officials as of late Tuesday night, according to Patch reports.

• MORE ON PATCH: Tornado Damages Buildings, Knocks Down Trees in Manhatta
• Tornado Touchdown, Flights Delayed Due To IL Storms

Photo credit: Patch file photo from flooding last summer in a neighborhood near the Chain O' Lakes. Photo credit: Amie Rowland