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Flooding: Mill Creek ice jams cause problems

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By Dustin Lemmon | Tuesday, March 04, 2008 | No comments posted

Twice in three weeks, Interstate 280 in Milan, Ill., has closed because of flooding, including a brief closure Sunday, and state officials say it’s the first time they can remember that happening.

Kevin Marchek, engineer of operations for the Illinois Department of Transportation, District 2, said unusual weather conditions are to blame.

“It’s been one of those years where we’ve had more above-average snowfalls,” he said, adding the frozen ground and high temperatures led to the water buildup.

Illinois State Police Trooper Jason Wilson said the floodwaters covered all lanes of the interstate Sunday and were as deep as 3 feet in some places.

Jeff Zogg, a hydrologist with the National Weather Service in the Quad-Cities, said ice jams on Mill Creek between the interstate and the Rock River have caused the abnormal floods. Mill Creek passes under the interstate just west of its interchange with Airport Road.

“This ice jam acts as a dam, and the water rises,” Zogg said. “It’s unusual that it’s never happened before.”

Increased snowmelt and heavy rainfall in recent weeks added more water in the creek, which also had more ice this year, Zogg noted.

“The ice on Mill Creek this winter is more prolific than it’s ever been before,” he said.

Zogg said enough water was able to pass through the ice jam Monday to allow floodwaters to recede. While a lot of snow has already melted, the threat of more flooding is not out of the way.

“There definitely is still a risk of it flooding there again,” he said.

In both recent floods, Illinois State Police closed both sides of the interstate and rerouted traffic through Milan. Westbound traffic was forced to exit the interstate near the Quad-City International Airport and eastbound traffic at Illinois 92.

I-280 was closed from Sunday afternoon until early Monday. The previous flooding occurred Feb. 17.

Wilson said vehicles can spin or roll over if they hit flood waters at high speeds.

“The big danger is if they’re maintaining a high speed and hydroplane,” he said, adding they’ve had cars damaged by floodwaters on the interstate but no serious-injury accidents.

Wilson noted it’s impossible to tell how deep floodwaters are when approaching in a car. Sections of the road can even be washed away, leaving huge holes.

Drivers should also disengage their cruise control when approaching floodwaters because once the tires lose traction, the cruise control will compensate by accelerating, causing the tires to spin faster and making the situation worse, Wilson said.

Marchek said it’s unusual to close an interstate because of flooding, and he’s not aware of any additional reason for the flooding beyond abnormal weather. There are no plans to reconstruct or increase the height of the interstate.

“There is nothing in the works right now,” he said.

Zogg said the National Weather Service is also monitoring floodwaters on the Rock River. The river was at 13.8 feet Monday in the Quad-Cities and is expected to crest at 15 feet Wednesday. Flood stage for the river locally is

12 feet.

“There is a high risk of ice jams on the Rock River,” Zogg said, noting an ice jam can cause waters to rise rapidly.

Dustin Lemmon can be contacted at (563) 383-2493 or dlemmon@qctimes.com.

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