Metropolitan Water Reclamation District combats flooding in Chicago

Sunday's intense rainfall overwhelmed the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago leading to flooding around the county. The flow of the Chicago River even had to be reversed to control the water levels in the city. When several inches of rain comes down in a matter of hours the sewer system reaches capacity giving the water no place to go. MWRD's Ed Staudacher has the details.

CHICAGO - Trying to avoid a repeat of last weekend's flooding, city officials asked Chicago-area residents to conserve water ahead of Wednesday night's storm.

The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) dealt with widespread flooding on Sunday. Cars were struck in deep water as drains overflowed into the streets.

Water conservation ahead of additional rainfall can help reduce the amount of water in city sewers, according to the MWRD.

Ahead of a storm, MWRD will also lower the level the waterways they manage including natural rivers and man-made canals.

MWRD usually treats 1.47 billion gallons of wastewater each day, but that number can reach over 2 million during heavy rainfall and the sewers run out of room.

"It just overwhelms the systems," MWRD Assistant Director of Maintenance and Operations, Ed Staudacher said.

First the water hits the sewers, then it goes to the treatment plant and any overflow is sent into a system of deep tunnels and big reservoirs that stretch for 109 miles.

Sometimes the rain is so intense that the water doesn't make it to the deep tunnel systems and begins stacking up in the streets, Staudacher said.

As the tunnels and reservoirs fill up, the extra water flows into the waterways. At that point, the district has to make the decision on if the flow of the Chicago River should be reversed out to the lake to prevent further flooding.

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The Chicago River was reversed Sunday for the first time since May 2021.