Emergency measures were taken late Friday to divert water from a small lake in Grandwood Park that was flooding into local yards and homes, and to head off a potential breach of a dam at the same location.
The work was completed by a combination of governmental agencies, contractors and volunteers.
The water in the lake in Lake Park rose quickly during the recent floods, sending water flowing over “scour-holes” in the banks caused by erosion and made worse by the flooding, according to Lake County Stormwater Commission Executive Director Michael Warner.
Flooding from the lake was primarily caused by flood-swollen Mill Creek, which flows through the lake and the park. For days, the water had been flowing over parkland, sidewalks and flooding neighboring homes.
Several homes on North Grandwood Drive near the park have been hit by flooding, including one owned by Terri Molidor, who said 6 to 8 inches of water had flooded her finished basement, and the water almost made it through her front door.
She said despite having flood insurance, her losses were “devastating.”
Pitching in Friday, even as an evening storm was beginning to form, were workers from the Warren Township Highway Department and Lake County Public Works, as well as several local community volunteers.
Warner said that scour holes at and near the lake dam were filled and stabilized, and the flood water was redirected by a sandbag channel away from the homes and back to Mill Creek, east of the lake.
He also said a contractor hauled in stones to shore up the base of a utility pole that appeared affected by erosion.
Monday morning, the stopgap repairs appeared to still be working. Eventually, though, more permanent repairs will likely need to be financed by the Grandwood Park Park District, Warner said.
Mill Creek flows out of Fourth Lake, Third Lake and Gages Lake before entering Grandwood Lake in the park. Eventually, the creek empties into the Des Plaines River farther north, according to Warner.
The Grandwood Park Park District has been struggling for some time with issues at the dam on the east end of the lake at the outflow to Mill Creek. Earlier this spring, a problem at the dam caused the draining of the lake before repairs were made and the lake level returned to normal.
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Park District Manager Leslie Cassidy said last week that the current flooding in the park area was not related to the dam.
“It’s all from the flooding — this has nothing to do with the dam,” she said. “We had the weirs (on the dam) back in place and it is working well and then the rains hit. There was no failure with the dam.”
Cassidy added it was too early to estimate potential damage to the park and surrounding areas due to the flooding.
County officials said have said that several homes and one business in Grandwood Park have formally reported damage due to the flooding.
