West Side Chicago residents clean up flooded homes after torrential rain
People in the Austin neighborhood on Chicago's West Side spent the day cleaning up flooded homes Wednesday, after a stubborn storm dropped several inches of rain and caused flash flooding the night before.
The residents worked to contain the water as the rain poured, but many ended up with damage.
For over an hour Tuesday night, Austin neighborhood residents Tyrone Murphy and Xavier Walker said they did what they could to keep water out of their basement.
"I heard water gushing, and then we came and looked, and it was flooding over here," said Walker.
"We made a makeshift dam that's out there, but it still got past it," added Murphy.
They tried to stop the water, and kept most of it out. But then they got the call that a couple of blocks away, Walker's mother's house was also taking on water.
Walker said the bottom of his mother's dresser and other furniture were ruined.
Not only were people in the Austin community trying to push water out of their homes, but Chicago area plumbers also responded to numerous calls late Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning.
Ron Thomas works for J. Blanton Plumbing. On Wednesday, he said he was sent to nine different buildings and homes — some with around 5 to 8 inches of water.
His goal was to arrive quickly before the water sat and started to cause mold.
"What happens in these big rains is the sewers get overpowered, and they enter the home through the sewer line," Thomas said.
Thomas said the only way to prevent flash floods from damaging basements and homes is to install a gate valve or sump pump.
While such devices are expensive, Thomas said they could have prevented the damage that James Hall incurred from flooding at his home in the Tri-Taylor neighborhood.
"Everything got wet down there. All the furniture, the electronics, our brand-new refrigerator that we have down there," Hall said.
Meanwhile, Walker said he spent all day going to other area homes to assess flood damage with the West Side Long Term Recovery Group.
"Helping to get the senior citizens, the older people that stay in their homes, to get all their stuff out that's wet and soaked," said Walker.
Walker said there was mold already growing in the basements of some houses a day after the flood. He added that around 140 people have asked for the group's help, all as he continues to clean up his own family's flood aftermath.
