Rainfall Totals for Chicago Area / Flood Warnings / Sunny, Warmer Saturday

Thursday went down in the record books as the wettest March day in Chicago since 1948, according to the National Weather Service. On March 30, 1.84 inches fell at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, breaking the old record of 1.36 inches.

Through 4:30 a.m. on Friday, here is a look at rainfall totals by Chicago area towns hardest hit by the rainfall:

• Elwood: 3.45 inches
• Woodstock: 2.69 inches
• Elburn: 2.60 inches
• Naperville: 2.53 inches
• Park Forest: 2.51 inches
• Oswego: 2.51 inches
• Glenwood: 2.51 inches
• Burbank: 2.47 inches
• Chicago Heights: 2.42 inches
• Midlothian: 2.37 inches
• Naperville: 2.36 inches
• Manhattan: 2.33 inches
• Chicago: 2.28 inches
• Hickory Hills: 2.23 inches
• Lake in the Hills: 2.2 inches
• Darien: 2.22 inches
• Woodridge: 2.13 inches

For a full list of rainfall totals, check the National Weather Service website.

Flood Warnings

The increased rainfall has lead to flooding for some rivers across the Chicago area. Flood warnings have been issued for:

• Des Plaines River near Russell affecting Lake County -- flood warning in effect until Wednesday evening
• Des Plaines River near Gurnee affecting Lake County--flood warning in effect until Sunday evening
• Des Plaines River at Lincolnshire affecting Lake County - flood warning in effect from this evening to Saturday afternoon
• Fox River at Montgomery affecting Kane and Kendall Counties--flood warning in effect until Saturday afternoon

The Fox River at Montgomery had reached 13.1 feet as of 9:45 a.m., reaching over the flood stage of 13 feet. Minor flooding is occurring and minor flooding remains in the forecast. The river is expected to fall below flood stage by Saturday morning.

The flood stage for the Des Plaines River at Lincolnshire is 12.5 feet and had reached 12. 1 feet as of 9:45 a.m. Minor flooding is in the forecast as the river is expected to rise above the flood stage by Friday evening and continue to rise near 12.6 feet by early Saturday. At 12.5 feet, water will begin to overflow onto Londonderry Lane.

Meanwhile, the Des Plaines River near Russell had reached 7.3, which is above its flood stage of 7 feet as of 10:30 a.m. Friday. Minor flooding is occurring and is in the forecast. The river will continue to rise to near 7.5 feet by Friday evening, according to the National Weather Service. The river will fall below flood stage by Wednesday afternoon. At 8 feet, agricultural land and park lands in the area flood and water could approach a few homes near railroad tracks.

The Des Plaines River near Gurnee has also reached 7.3 feet, which is above the river's flood stage of 7 feet as of 10:30 a.m. Friday. Minor flooding is occurring and minor flooding is in the forecast. The river will continue rising to near 7.6 feet by early Saturday and should fall below flood stage by Sunday afternoon. At 7 feet, flooding begins to affect the lowest areas near the river.

This Weekend's Forecast

Scattered light rain showers will push east of the Chicago area by early Friday afternoon but the clouds will remain into this evening. Blustery conditions are also expected throughout the day with wind gusts up to 30 mph. High temps between 40 and 46 degrees are in the forecast for the Chicago area for Friday.

Clouds will thin tonight and we should see some sun Saturday. High temperatures will be between 50 and 56 degrees on Saturday with temps in the mid-40s near the lake.

Mostly cloudy skies and temps in the lower 50s are in the forecast for Sunday.

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