All the fun washed away
Rainy weather forced several events to be canceled in Chicago and its suburbs Sunday.
The 49th annual Chicago Air and Water Show was called off a few hours early because of rain and low clouds.
The Village of Fox Lake was forced to cancel its 11th annual cardboard boat race because of the rain, which will be held at Lakefront Park, 71 Nippersink Blvd., on Sept. 9. More information on the event can be found at www.foxlake.org.
Residents in Lake Zurich reported flooded basements to the town's police and fire departments Sunday. The National Weather Service said the area got around two to two and a half inches of rain Sunday.
South Elgin was also affected by the storm. The last few hours of RiverFest Express were canceled because of the rain.
Although the beer tent was open and the Moods and New Invaders were entertaining festival-goers, the rides and car show had closed shop hours earlier when the festival resumed at 5 p.m. The small business expo and craft show were also canceled.
Even the 960 rubber ducks that were set to race down the Fox River Sunday afternoon had to seek higher ground. The South Elgin Area Jaycees Duck Race to raise money for Camp New Hope was postponed until Oct. 6. The race will now occur in conjunction the South Elgin Parks and Recreation's Harvest Hustle Fun Run and Walk.
The closing night fireworks display was also called off, but organizers say the show will likely close out the village's Harvest Hustle. A car show is also planned. More information regarding an alternate date for the fireworks show will be available at www.riverfestexpress.com.
Rain also forced the cancellation Sunday of the Fox Valley Chapter of the Model T Ford Club International's annual car show in Elgin. Organizer Steve Thoren said it was the first washout in 30 years for the show that began in the early 1970s. The car show will not be rescheduled for this year. Fans will have to wait for the 2008 event, Thoren said.
The National Weather Service reported that most of the north and west suburbs got between one and three inches of rain Sunday, and is expected to continue throughout the next several days, officials said.
Storms also delayed flights at O'Hare averaging two or more hours. More than 200 flights were canceled in and out of O'Hare Sunday, officials said.
Rains delayed flights at Midway for about 30-60 minutes, where no major cancellations were reported.
Rain may have messed with people's plans Sunday, but on the bright side, ComEd showed no major outages in their Chicagoland coverage area, officials said.