If you were planning a long, steamy shower to ride out the storms, Chicago officials would rather you put that on hold. As rounds of heavy rain move through the region, the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District has declared an Overflow Action Day and is asking residents across the metro area to ease up on home water use. With the ground already soaked and rivers running high, the goal is to keep combined sewers from getting overwhelmed and backing up into basements or overflowing into local waterways.
What Officials Want You To Turn Off (For Now)
Under the alert, residents are being urged to delay showers and baths, cut back on laundry, and run dishwashers only when they are full and truly needed. Fewer toilet flushes help too, since all of it ends up in the same combined sewer system that handles both sewage and stormwater. According to NBC Chicago, the request coincides with MWRD’s Overflow Action Day to free up as much space as possible in pipes and reservoirs ahead of several rounds of storms. In a press release, the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District asked residents to “limit water usage to absolute necessities” while crews juggle flows at treatment plants and through the massive Tunnel and Reservoir Plan system.
Rivers Swollen, Deep Tunnel Filling Up
Weeks of heavy rain have already pushed local waterways and reservoirs toward their limits. FOX 32 reported flooding along the Fox and Des Plaines rivers in some northern suburbs, where officials have rolled out sandbags and opened shelters for residents in low-lying areas. At the same time, WTTW noted that MWRD’s Deep Tunnel reservoirs are already holding a lot of water, with McCook at about 85 percent capacity and Thornton at roughly 25 percent. With that much storage already spoken for, any additional intense downpours raise the odds of flash flooding and sewer backups.
Storm Train Puts System To The Test
Forecasters are not exactly giving the region a breather. The Weather Prediction Center and local National Weather Service offices have warned of multiple waves of rain and storms, including the potential for gusty winds and very heavy downpours. The WPC has highlighted a slight risk for excessive rainfall across parts of the Midwest, which is meteorologist-speak for a decent chance of flooding problems if storms repeatedly hit the same spots. MWRD officials caution that the most severe flooding can force the release of untreated or partially treated wastewater into the Chicago River or Lake Michigan, according to the agency. “Our staff is managing billions of gallons of water at our seven water reclamation plants and through our Tunnel and Reservoir Plan to protect our water environment and mitigate flooding,” MWRD President Kari K. Steele said in a statement.
How Neighbors Can Take The Pressure Off
For now, the ask is simple: shorten those showers, wait on laundry day if you can, and only run the dishwasher with a full load and when it is really necessary. Those small choices add up when millions of people are all draining into the same system. Longer term, homeowners and building managers can chip away at the problem by installing rain barrels or rain gardens, planting more native vegetation that drinks up stormwater, and replacing solid pavement with permeable surfaces that let water soak into the ground instead of rushing into sewers, as reported by NBC Chicago.
