Flood warning issued for Algonquin
The National Weather Service has issued a flood warning for the portion of the Fox River that flows through Algonquin, an official confirmed Thursday.
The water level in Algonquin stood at 11.88 feet Thursday afternoon, exceeding the river’s flooding threshold of 9.5 feet, according to Michael Kumbera, the assistant to the Algonquin village manager. It is expected to climb to 14 feet by Saturday, with additional water flowing down from the north.
As a result, the village has closed several downtown streets and made sandbags available for residents. Sandbags can be picked up in the following locations: Hubbard Street and Oceola Drive; Rattray Drive and Beach Drive; Rattray Drive and Filip Road; Center Street and Willow Street; La Fox River Drive at Cornish Par; and Riverfront Park.
Portions of La Fox River Drive, Fox River Drive and Rattray Drive were closed Thursday because of flooding. Localized flooding in various locations in the village was expected to subside later on Thursday.
“(We) still recommend that people avoid downtown just with the waters that are flooding in that area and with sandbag operations,” Kumbera said.
On Thursday McHenry County reopened Algonquin Road west of Route 31, hours after heavy rainfall and flooding forced its closure Thursday morning west of downtown.
Lt. James Wagner, the bureau commander of special services in McHenry County, advised motorists to drive slowly and with caution.
“There’s water on the road itself,” Wagner said. “It’s not necessarily covering the entire roadway.”
Elsewhere, Huntley authorities closed Vine Street between Reed Road and Joan Avenue. Officials asked drivers to use Route 47 as an alternate route. They also were drilling a hole in a berm at Main Street and Kreutzer Road to ease flooding on Kreutzer Road near the Lions Chase subdivision, Huntley Deputy Police Chief Michael Klunk said.
Residents of Algonquin Shores, a riverfront community in unincorporated Kane County near Algonquin, are experiencing flooding, authorities said.
Workers from the Kane County Office of Emergency Management were taking sandbags up to the residents at Algonquin Shores Thursday morning, said Don Bryant, the director of emergency management. The flooding affected about a dozen homes, but Bryant said there were no reports of residents evacuating.
Cary and Fox River Grove weren’t experiencing any major issues, but parts of unincorporated Lake County near Cary reported high water on certain streets, Residents living in 15 homes near Lagoon Drive and Fox River Road were sandbagging their homes, as their backyards lie close to the Fox River, said Brad Delatorre, deputy fire chief of the Cary Fire Protection District. Sandbags also are available for Fox River Grove residents. Residents will find the sandbags at the water tower on Algonquin Road and Grove Avenue and at the park on Lincoln Avenue and North River Road.
Ÿ Daily Herald staff writer Charles Keeshan contributed to this story.