With heavy rains forecast from late Wednesday morning through early Friday, the National Weather Service has issued a flood watch for northern Illinois, including Cook County. In addition, the agency is predicting that the Des Plaines River will reach flood stage in Riverside by late Thursday night or early Friday morning.
The National Weather Service’s Advance Hydrologic Prediction Service is estimating the river will crest at 7 feet in Riverside, which is flood stage. As of 3:45 p.m. on Wednesday, the river level was at 5.18 feet.
If the river reaches flood stage, water will inundate low-lying areas in the forest preserves and parks adjacent to the river. It should not impact Riverside streets.
In Brookfield, officials said they were monitoring the level of Salt Creek and will continue to monitor low-lying areas in south Hollywood and the 3500 block of Forest Avenue, where high water is typically an issue during strong rain events.
