Flood-control facilities activated in DuPage County

All major flood-control facilities in DuPage County have been activated following the weekend’s heavy rainfall.

DuPage County saw between 2.5 and 3.5 inches of rain since Saturday afternoon, with an additional quarter inch forecast through Monday, DuPage County Public Information Officer Evan Shields said.

The increased rainfall raised elevations in Salt Creek and the West Branch of the DuPage River enough to trigger the county’s large flood control facilities, including the Elmhurst Quarry; Wood Dale-Itasca Reservoir; Fawell Dam in Naperville; Spring Creek Reservoir in Bloomingdale; and the Armstrong Park Reservoirs in Carol Stream, Shields said.

Of the county’s 16 flood facilities, the five largest have mechanical equipment allowing staff to control them based on a predetermined operating plan, Shields said. The other facilities protect surrounding areas from flooding without human intervention, using fixed weirs and natural drainage systems.

All told, the facilities have a floodwater storage capacity of nearly 4 billion gallons, Shields said.