Record Chicagoland Rainfall Prompts Flash Flood Advisory

More than 5.5 inches of rain fell upon west Wilmette and more than 4.4 inches fell on the east side of the village during Saturday's historic storm, according to an emergency e-alert from the Village.

The alert indicates that, "official National Weather Service data for Chicago states that 6.91 inches of rain fell after midnight has set the all-time record for most rain on a calendar day." Meanwhile a flash flood warning has been issued for northern Cook County until 12:30 p.m. today. ()

Overnight, the heaviest downpour came between 12:30 a.m. and 2:30 a.m., in which rainfall exceeded 2 inches per hour. The village implemented the following measures to cope with the storm: 

• West of Ridge Road: "the Village's Storm Water Pumping Station ran at full capacity throughout the storm without interruption."
• East of Ridge Road: "the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District told the Village at 2:20 a.m. this morning that it had opened the locks at Wilmette Harbor to help relieve sewers on the east side."

Locks at the harbor remained open as of 10:30 a.m. Saturday. Additionally the village's streets are designed "hold water to slow its entry into the sewers so that it does not add to basement flooding."

If water remains ponded on streets for more than several hours, or if basement flooding occurs, the village encourages residents to call the Wilmette Police Department NON-EMERGENCY line: (847) 256-1200. Any power outages should be reported to 1-800-EDISON-1.

Stay tuned to Patch for more details. Meanwhile join the flash flood discussion on Facebook, and let us know if you are without power or experienced severe rain damage.