Watseka Mayor: Waters Receding, Some Could Return Home Monday
Flooding conditions around a gas station in Watseka in a picture taken on Monday (Donna Collins)
The mayor of Watseka says the floodwaters are starting to recede in the Iroquois County city, which was hit by its worst flooding since 2008. But Mayor Bob Harwood says conditions are ‘nowhere near’ as bad as what Watseka saw in the 2008 flood, when about 1,500 were forced to leave their homes in January.
About 400 residents on the north side of Watseka have been staying at a local church.
Harwood said it’s not yet safe for them to return home, but they might be able to by early next week.
"We're confident that enough water has gotten out town, that if there's such thing as a normal rainfall this summer, that we'll be handle it," he said. "It won't cause any major issues, any worse than they are right now."
He said the flood damaged a handful of businesses in low-lying areas, but Watseka’s Super 8 motel has still been taking guests, despite the flooded street just outside.
“They did stay open – they don’t have the right to close the motel under these circumstances," he said. "And people from the neighborhood were actually boating guests into the motel so they could spend the night.”
Both the Iroquois River and Sugar Creek crested this week near Watseka at about 25 feet, both about 6 feet above flood stage.
Harwood said a couple of flooded streets on Watseka’s south side have now reopened.