Eisenhower Expressway Reopened After Overnight Flooding
By Chuck Sudo in News on Aug 5, 2014 1:40PM
Photo credit: Network Video Productions
Traffic on the Eisenhower Expressway is back to a semblance of normalcy this morning after the overnight storms forced the closing of portions of the roadway due to massive flooding.
Both directions of the Ike were closed between Harlem Avenue and Mannheim Road just before midnight. The flooding ranged from the Des Plaines exit to 25th Avenue, at points reaching waist deep.
Photo credit: Network Video Productions
The flooding forced CTA to suspend service on the Blue Line Forest Park branch between Forest Park and Harlem. BY 4 a.m. all of the westbound lanes on the Eisenhower were re-opened, while the far eastbound lane remained closed because the flooding caused the pavement to buckle. CTA re-opened the Harlem and Forest Park Blue Line stations around 4:15 a.m.
The flooding occurred shortly after the National Weather Service issued a hazardous weather outlook for north central Illinois that included the possibility for flash flooding. There were reports of water coming out of manholes on the Eisenhower, and more than three inches of rain fell at O'Hare Airport. Some suburbs reported seeing dime-sized hail.