More rain pounds the Chicago region, and more flooding is possible

Flood warnings and advisories for portions of the Chicago area have expired following severe thunderstorms that moved through the region overnight, but warnings continue for the hard-hit northern suburbs.

Flooding will continue along parts of the Fox and Des Plaines rivers, the National Weather Service said, with the most significant flood risk on Friday.

According to the weather service, “very heavy rainfall” is possible at times, so flooding could occur. Thunderstorms continued through Thursday’s morning commute and produced ponding water on roadways, with winds up to 40 mph, the weather service said.

A flood advisory was in effect until 9:15 a.m. for parts of Cook, Kendall and DuPage counties, as well as southern Lake County, northern Will County, southeastern Kane County and northwestern Lake County in Indiana, the weather service said. Those have now expired.

As of 7:45 a.m., 2.73 inches of rainfall had been recorded near Harvard and McHenry over the past 24 hours, according to the weather service. Elgin saw 1.12 inches of rainfall in the same period, while 1.14 inches were reported in Lake Zurich.

The Des Plaines River, which had begun to recede at Des Plaines, falling below the 18-foot mark on Wednesday, was back up to 18.2 feet as of 2 p.m. Thursday, the weather service reports. The river had crested at 19.98 feet last weekend.

A flood warning will remain in effect through Sunday for the Des Plaines River, which saw record flood levels last week. The flood warning covers the river near Gurnee, Russell and Lincolnshire in Lake County, and near Des Plaines in Cook County. Also covered by the warning is the Fox River at Algonquin Tailwater in Kane and McHenry counties.

More storms are possible Thursday afternoon and into the evening, and the weather service is also warning of excessive heat risks Friday and Saturday, with heat index readings topping 100.

Thunderstorms are likely again Friday night, which the weather service said could cause worsened flooding.