O'Shea calls for investigation of recent flooding

O’Shea requested the city’s Department of Water Management (DWM) and the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) to investigate and report back to the ward.

O’Shea said residents can report flooded basements by calling 311 or visiting

https://311.chicago.gov/s/service-request?language=en_US.

Residents should be as thorough as possible, reporting how much water they received and whether it was clean or dirty.

The Beverly Review has sent messages to the DWM and MWRD about the flooding.

MWRD Spokesperson Allison Fore said her office was contacted by O’Shea’s office and will provide any information requested to the city.

She said a strong storm likely caused problems on a local level and that the MWRD system was operating appropriately.

“We believe this was a very intense, very local storm that overwhelmed the city’s sewer system,” Fore said. “A rain gauge in the Ashburn neighborhood just to the north recorded over 2 inches of rain in two hours, while there was virtually no rain on the North Side of the city and only a quarter of an inch at our gauge at 95th Street and the Skyway.

“The MWRD’s deep tunnel system was completely open and available and took on water during the storm, but due to the extreme intensity, the local sewers likely couldn’t deliver such large amounts of water that fell in a very short period of time.”

This is an ongoing story. A full story will appear in the July 27 issue of The Beverly Review.

If you experienced flooding and would like to share your thoughts, send an email to kgarmes@beverlyreview.net