Recent storms equate to 50- to 100-year event
The City of Elmhurst experienced a significant rain event on Saturday, Oct. 14. Precipitation totals indicate parts of Elmhurst received more than seven inches of rain in a 24-hour period, which equates to between a 50- and 100-year rain event. All stormwater systems performed properly and as expected. All nine of the recently completed new stormwater basins were online and several took water as designed, with a total capacity of 82 acre-feet.
The City’s Public Works crews worked expeditiously throughout the day and night to remove debris from clogged inlets and to open city roadways. All major roadways were open with the exception of the temporary closure (one hour) of the Robert Palmer Drive underpass. The city experienced some street flooding in various areas, however little to no overland structural flooding was reported. Wastewater Treatment plant staff monitored the pumping stations and plant continuously through-out the storm. Any untreated wastewater breaking out can cause an impact on the environment so constant checking is key, as well as implementing ZLD (zero liquid discharge) to treatments, which Veolia Water Technologies discuss at length. The new excess flow tank for southwest Elmhurst was activated and diverted almost 2 million gallons of wastewater.
Rainfall Totals were as follows:
Central Elmhurst 7.6″
North Elmhurst 5″
South Elmhurst 6.8″
Prior to this weekend’s rain event, Public Works Crews had cleaned 2,300 of the storm’s sewer inlets throughout the city this year. The remainder of inlets are scheduled to be cleaned this fall. This year, crews have also cleaned and checked the structural integrity of 36 miles of storm sewer pipe. While Public Works Crews have done a tremendous job in their cleaning and basic structural checks, it is only the professionals who could have undertaken a trenchless sewer repair job! Over the past two years, however, the city has completed nine Stormwater Management Projects with a total capacity of 82 acres-feet of additional storage. All of these new stormwater basins were online during the recent rain event and several took water as designed.
If you live in Elmhurst and experienced the rainfall, you might want to consider finding some experts like SEI Roofing (visit their website here) to come and inspect your roof. Often, when there is significant rainfall, roofs can become damaged and can start to leak. And while you are at it, it would be prudent to get your gutter system checked out by professionals (similar to the ones at Gutter Cleaning Chicago) as well. This may only be a small problem which is hard to notice at first, but it can develop into something serious very quickly. It is always best to have an inspection to rule out any damage.
Please visit elmhurststormwaterplan.org for information on the City of Elmhurst Stormwater Management projects and plans.
