Homeowners play the waiting game
Sandbag walls are stacked 3 feet high and sump pumps run continuously.
It's all that prevents 2 feet of Chain O' Lakes floodwater from seeping into roughly 15 homes in a few subdivisions around Fox Lake.
Residents of Kings Island subdivision off Route 12, Atwater Park off Grand Avenue and Knollwood Park subdivision along Route 59 fear what the next few days hold.
"I'm just preparing for the worst," King's Island resident Steve Fulk said as he looked over water that covered his back lawn and crept up the foundation of his Park Avenue home. "It's still early, so we'll do as much as we can and hope for the best."
While loading sandbags early Wednesday morning, carp and other fish swam within a couple of feet of where he was walking.
"I just wish it was walleye instead of carp coming on my lawn," he said. "What are we going to do, you know?"
Fox Lake officials said the Chain rose about 8 inches Tuesday night and throughout the day Wednesday. Without new rainfall, the Chain is expected to crest early this morning.
That should be about 6 feet above normal summer levels. Property damage flooding occurs in low-lying Fox Lake areas at 5½ feet.
However, Fox Lake Emergency Services Disaster Agency Director Ed Lescher said the big fear is heavy overnight thunderstorms -- some potentially capable of producing up to 4 inches of rain by today -- predicted for northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin.
If that happens, Lescher said, flooding will worsen.
"We'll be prepared for it either way," he said. "I just really hope it doesn't come."
The Fox River in New Munster, Wis., crested about 4 feet, 9 inches above flood levels at just after 3:30 p.m. Tuesday. Those numbers fell slightly Wednesday.
Any new rain to the north would force the river to rise, Lescher said, and push more water into Fox Lake's saturated neighborhoods.
Lescher said 3,000 more sandbags were filled by volunteers Wednesday. Residents should contact the village street department, (847) 587-8570, for sandbags.
He also urged residents in flooded areas around Fox Lake to make sure sump pumps are working properly and furnace pilot lights are ignited. All electrical equipment should be above any water that may seep into homes. All boats be should secured to shore, and piers anchored properly.
The news was a bit more optimistic on the east side of the county. The National Weather Service predicted the Des Plaines River in Gurnee will crest early Friday morning at 8.3 feet above the 7-foot flood stage. Less than an inch of rainfall is projected through Friday.
Access to Emerald Avenue and Kilbourne Road, near the river just east of Route 132 and Milwaukee Avenue, is affected when water reaches about 8.5 feet. Businesses around Old Grand Avenue in Gurnee typically begin to have water problems when the river reaches 9.5 feet.
Officials said Wednesday there was no need for anyone to leave the Des Plaines River area.
In Fox Lake, it's a matter of waiting for the water to level off and recede.
"We'll be all right," Phil Puckett said from behind a wall of sandbags blocking 2 feet of water on his driveway. "The village has done a good job. We should be OK."