Flooding, cold temps raise concerns about Fox
For those in the business of watching how high the Fox River is, this winter has put them on overtime.
The snowstorms, freak thaws and plunges into frigid temperatures have their concerns rising and falling as fast as the water's level.
Two weeks ago, folks like East Dundee Public Works Director T.J. Moore and West Dundee Village Manager Joe Cavallaro were getting nervous that the melting snow and rain running into the Fox were pushing the level too close to its banks.
This week, they are breathing easier. But there's a cold snap forecast for the end of this week.
"There have been nervous times this winter," Moore said. "We're always waiting for the higher water to get south of us."
When it does, the potential for flooding is someone else's concern. Just make sure floating ice doesn't stop at the curve under the I-90 Tollway bridge and collect to form a dam. If that happens, the flow goes over or under the ice and the level rises again, said Rita Lee a hydraulic engineer for the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
Those dams have been known to push the river over its banks and onto roads and yards, such as those in the unincorporated Richardson subdivision. That neighborhood is on the Fox's east banks between East Dundee and Elgin.
"This winter we've seen flows well above normal," Lee said. "We had snow, then rain, then warm temperatures. All of it flows down from Wisconsin. It takes a couple of days to get from the Wisconsin border to the Algonquin spillway. And it's longer to get to Dundee and Elgin."
The stretch between Algonquin and the Wisconsin border is 34 miles of river, said Todd Miller, locktender at the Stratton Lock and Dam in McHenry. In all, it takes about five days for the high water to flow between East and West Dundee.
"We've had some high water this year, but luckily it hasn't been a problem," he said. "We can control the water's flow coming out of the (McHenry) spillway somewhat, but what's in it already is another matter."
Officials in both Dundee Township communities said plans are on the books to warn residents of a potential flooding. They haven't had to use them this year.
West Dundee officials have an additional concern though. They have been watching the rise and fall and have been cringing at potential bank erosion. The problem became apparent last year with heavy summer rainstorms. When the Fox River goes up and then down, it takes with it some soil, which lays between the popular riverwalk.
Officials have seen the damage and are looking for ways to stop it, Cavallaro said. Until they do, more tree roots may be exposed and the water will inch closer to the decorative brick paths.