More rain expected, but flooding not in the early forecast

Weather forecasters have indicated that, while the ground may be saturated due to rainfall earlier this week, this latest rain overnight into Thursday should not result in any major flooding throughout Lake and northern Cook counties.

Amy Seeley, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service, said forecast river heights were not readily available early Thursday, but said only about a half-inch of rain has been recorded in the Des Plaines River and Fox River watersheds.

Because river levels on the Des Plaines River were dropping prior to the rain overnight, it shouldn't show any significant issues going forward. The latest forecasts from yesterday show river levels reaching the “at-flood stage” level on the river level website.

“Most of the flood warnings have been canceled already, and the rivers were declining prior to the rain today.” she said. “We could see some increased water levels when the new forecast comes out, but it should be only slightly.”

She said people can expect to see scattered showers Thursday morning, then a break from the rain this afternoon. However, there is a 50 percent chance of rain overnight tonight.

The forecast calls for cool temperatures in the morning, reaching a high of only about 51 degrees this afternoon.

The rain is of the scattered shower variety, Seeley said, and not the heavy rainfall experienced earlier this week.

For more information, people can see their forecast at the weather.gov.