DuPage battles rains, flooding

It seems that just about everybody spent Saturday dealing with the effects of nonstop rains that pounded communities in DuPage County and much of the Chicago area.

Heavy rainfall canceled a fall festival in Villa Park and a high school marching band competition in Roselle. And rising waters forced firefighters from a Wheaton fire station to move to drier quarters at City Hall.

A patchwork of roads remained under water in Naperville, Carol Stream, Warrenville, West Chicago and several other DuPage County communities, frustrating drivers throughout the day.

Lake Park High School's marching band program took the effects of Saturday's storms particularly hard.

Twenty-two high school marching bands had planned to travel to Lake Park's Roselle campus to perform in its annual Joust Marching Band Competition.

But rain and impassable roads near Lake Park High kept many of the competing school bands from attending, forcing organizers to cancel the event. A practice field used by the school band was completely submerged, with water spilling off onto Bryn Mawr Avenue, which runs adjacent to the school.

"It hurts," said Mike Chiodo, band director for Lake Park High School. "This was pretty much our biggest fundraiser of the year."

Last year the school raised about $58,000 from the competition, which attracts high school bands from Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin and Iowa. About one-third of the band program's annual budget comes from the event, Chiodo said, funding everything from equipment and uniforms to travel expenses for out-of-state competitions.

The school had hoped to move the competition indoors, but organizers said that it was clear by midmorning that the heavy rains would make driving to the Roselle campus treacherous. The few schools that did arrive were treated to a meal in the cafeteria before heading back home, parent volunteer Mary Barranco said.

"Basically, we've been keeping the school open for the bands we weren't able to reach" notifying them of the cancellation, she said.

The school won't be able to reschedule the competition this year, and Chiodo said the band program will have to try and make up the lost money by hosting other fundraisers later this year.

"We've got some money stored up for these sorts of situations," he said. "But we took a big hit today."

In Wheaton, flooding along Main Street forced the Wheaton Fire Department to close its station at 1700 N. Main St. Five members of the station's engine and ambulance company were relocated to Wheaton City Hall.

"We've got people monitoring the water levels along the street," Wheaton Fire Capt. Jeff Benda said. "They'll be (at city hall) until the water goes down along Main Street to safe enough levels to allow them to be at the station."

Organizers of Villa Park's Oktoberfest say they hope to resume their festival Sunday after heavy rains and flooding in Lions Park forced them to shut down Friday and Saturday.

The bridge crossing Williams Road, north of Batavia Road, in Warrenville was submerged by rising waters in the DuPage River, fire officials said.

West Chicago firefighters responded to dozens of calls for stalled cars and flooded basements. The intersection of Route 38 and Town Road remained flooded late Saturday afternoon, fire officials said.

And Naperville officials reported several flooded streets and intersections in the city, including sections of Calcutta Lane in the Cress Creek subdivision, and the intersections of both Tudor Drive and Gowdey Road, and Washington Street and Bauer Road.