News

Fox River, Chain expected to crest Monday

Posted April 20, 2013 4:09 pm

Daily Herald staff report

George LeClaire/gleclaire@dailyherald.comRich Sanders walks back to his house on Lincolnshire Way in Lincolnshire after checking the water level at the end of the block and turning back on Saturday, April 20, 2013. Rich said his house did not get any water.

Storm-battered residents are casting a weary eye over the Fox River and Chain O’ Lakes in Lake County, which will continue to rise until they crest Monday, while the Des Plaines River reached its peak in that county early Friday.

The Fox River near New Munster, Wis., had begun cresting by late afternoon Saturday and is forecast to reach a peak of 14.9 feet Sunday, according to the National Weather Service.

Nippersink Creek near Spring Grove also may be close to cresting.

The Fox River in Lake County is expected to crest at 8 feet Monday.

“In Illinois, we’re expecting the Chain O’ Lakes to continue to rise until Monday,” said Rita Lee, a water resources engineer for the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. “The tributaries have crested and are starting to fall.”

By 4 p.m. Saturday, Fox Lake, one of the bigger lakes in the chain, had reached 7.58 feet above the flood stage of 7 feet, Lee said.

The Stratton Dam tailwater gauge was at 7.09 feet, and Algonquin Dam tailwater gauge was at 12.4 feet by 4 p.m. Saturday and was expected to continue rising through Monday, she said.

All gates at Stratton and Algonquin dams are fully opened. The Fox River and Chain O’ Lakes in Lake and McHenry counties are closed for boating, according to the Fox Waterway Agency website.

George LeClaire/gleclaire@dailyherald.comMichelle VanDuynhoven gives her husband, John, a letter to mail at the bottom of the steps to their home on Stonegate Circle in Lincolnshire on Saturday, April 20, 2013. John said there was no water in their house because they rebuilt it higher up in 2010.

George LeClaire/gleclaire@dailyherald.comLincolnshire-Riverwoods Fire Protection District truck 53 Truck drives past a pump on Oxford Drive in Lincolnshire after checking an evacuated home where the alarm was going off on Saturday, April 20, 2013.

George LeClaire/gleclaire@dailyherald.comRich Sanders checks the level of the water on his boots and decides to walk back to his house on Lincolnshire Way in Lincolnshire. Sanders wanted to checking the water level at the end of the block but turning back on Saturday, April 20, 2013. Rich said his house did not get any water.

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