Sandbags On Standby Along Illinois River At Peoria

Press release from the City of Peoria:

May 27, 2020

The 2,000-foot-long sandbag floodwall constructed to keep the Illinois River at Peoria floodwaters at bay along River Station is sitting idle, awaiting further action from Public Works. While the water may have crested on Friday, May 22, at 27.91 feet – the National Weather Service (NWS) at Lincoln’s flood warning remains in effect.

“We never want to start removing the wall right after the river has crested,” said Assistant Director of Operations, Sie Maroon. “Nature is unpredictable and could still have a few tricks up its sleeve. We can’t let our guard down just yet.”

Earlier in the week, storms swept in Monday and Tuesday night with more rain forecast for Wednesday and Thursday. While the charts on raingages.com show the river in a steady decline, the added rainfall could slow the river’s recession to normal levels. Bear in mind, flood stage is 18 feet, and currently the river sits at 26.36 feet as of Wednesday at 7 a.m.

Flooding remains a threat as the Department continues to monitor the type of weather communities are receiving up river. According to the United States Geological Survey, streamflow is always changing as precipitation runoff is constantly shifting. Rainfall causes rivers to rise, and a river can even rise if it only rains very far up in the watershed.

The 2019 flood is an example of when the river crested, receded, then rose again after northern Illinois was hit with additional rainfall. In total, Public Works Flood Fighters left the wall up for 40 days last year as a precaution.

“We have a long way to go,” said Maroon. “The normal range along the riverfront is more in the depth of 12 to 15 feet. We can safely begin to remove the wall when the river reaches 22 feet. That could be a matter of days or weeks, weather permitting.”

This press release was produced by the City of Peoria. The views expressed here are the author’s own.