Gurnee Il, flood damage

I just heard on the news here in detroit that gurnee Il had a lot of flood damage.

Does anyone know if sfga was affected?

I heard it's completely under water. You have to hold your breath when you ride stuff.

/sarcasm

No, I haven't heard, but I really kinda doubt it. Is the park anywhere near a river?

Its fine. I heard that is was opened today. Its just aht some of the streets around it are flooded.

Actually, the east end of the park is quite near the Des Plaines River:

http://maps.yahoo.com/maps_result?ed=iAOuCOp_0Tok9Zfjs8iruhGOcuty8ZLYhHE-&csz=60031&country=us&new=1&name=&qty=

But I doubt there's anything to worry about.

mOOSH

*** Edited 5/24/2004 11:09:39 PM UTC by Mamoosh***

The park is less than a mile from the Des Plaines river. Put it this way. If you drive even a little bit east of the park, you better have a canoe handy. Infact, the flooding is right near the employee entrance.

It's very bad at this point and won't subside until early next week. The river right now is 6ft above flood stage.

At this point , the park is fine but its dangerously close to the east side of the park.

Most of the flooding is east of Six Flags. Grand Avenue is closed east of the park due to high water but the park itself is fine right now.

I have a feeling that employees can't enter the employee entrance now or they won't be able to in the next couple of days.

The water is covering Rte 21 which is where the employees have to enter.

Here is a map showing the closed roads and flooded areas. SFGAm is located where the map says GURNEE. It's close but the park will be alright.

*** Edited 5/24/2004 11:45:20 PM UTC by Chitown***

This is not good, especially for the wooden coasters and even more for AE. Everytime I go there I swear that thing is about to colapse, I cant believe how bad it looks despite being slightly over 20 years old. Ive seen coasters 100 years older that look better. No matter how much paint they put on the thing starts to chip 2 weeks later. Imagine what a little water dammage is going to do to that one.

Not that I've seen a topo map or everything, but after driving through the park last weekend from that entrance, I'm sure it's fairly well off. The park is surrounded by lower elevations to the west (the freeway) and the south.

Just drove by Great America late last night. The flooding is close to the east, but would still have a ways to go before affecting the park. For those in the Chicagoland area, there's a picture of the flooding on the front page of the Chicago Tribune, and you can see the Eagle and Superman in the background.

As of this morning it looked like Route 21 was open. However I dont know how long Washington Street and the I-94 tollway will stay open. Both are pretty threatened right now with flooding. It will definitely be an interesting drive to and from work since I have to cross the Des Plaines river to get to and from work.

As far as the park is concerned I doubt that there will be any major flooding in the park. Even if the floods go into park property it will have to progress all the way across the employee lot before the park floods.

On the website that Chitown reference, if you click on the Food of 2004: Photo Album, the fourth picture will show you how close the flood waters are to the park.

Washington Street is the main street to get to the East side right now, or at least that is what the news is reporting. They are trying to get people to take 137 since Washington is apparently a wall of cars. The news also said that 120 is closed from I-94 going East (120 is the SFGAm backup exit off I-94). I was contemplating stopping at the park this week, but I dont want to get caught in the mess of traffic up in that area.

If 94 closes the park may as well close too because there will be no way to get to it (except by boat).

Talk about theming though, Disney may have castles but SFGAm has a moat ;).

Here's the latest from Gurnee:

GURNEE FLOODING
PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Commander Jay Patrick
847.599.7000
847.244.8678 Fax
Date: May 25, 2004
Time: 11:00 A.M.

Gurnee, IL - A meeting of Village officials and emergency services
was held in the EOC at 9:30 A.M. to brief personnel on the flood relief
efforts and current river status. As of 5:30 A.M., the Des Plaines
River level was at 11.6 feet which is over 4.6 feet above flood stage
and the rate it is rising has slowed.. The river is now expected to
crest at 7:00 P.M. this evening at a level of 12.0 feet. Once the river
reaches its crest, it is predicted that it will remain at the 12.0 foot
level for about 12 hours before receding. That level will exceed the
record level of 11.95 feet set in 1986. That forecast is without any
further rain events. Additional rainfall in the area will impact those
figures.

Road closures remain a problem for local traffic. Route 120 is now
closed at O'Plaine Road to the east and Route 21 to the west. There
will be efforts underway today to sandbag along Route 120 and pump out
the water and re-open the road. We are asking that anyone that
doesn't need to drive through the Gurnee area to please avoid
driving on the roadways. There is a great deal of traffic congestion
due to road closures. Drivers need to have patience and plan on extra
travel time. Roads closed due to flood water include Route 132, between
Route 21 and Route 41. Route 41 is closed at Rt. 21 to the north and at
Delany Road to the south.

All but ten inhabitants in the flood area have been evacuated. Most
businesses have also evacuated. Gurnee Grade School on Kilbourne Road
is still occupied and efforts to keep water out are on-going.
Sandbagging efforts have slowed but are resuming this morning. The only
access to flooded homes and businesses is by boat.

There is a misconception that there is a boil order for water in
Gurnee. There is no boil order for water. The Lake County Health
Department will make any determination of a need to boil water and that
information will be released should it become necessary.

We are asking that anyone not required to be in the flood area, stay
away and stay out of the water. There are a number of hazards in the
flood area including electrical shock. Boats and canoes should not be
in or around the Des Plaines River.

Any residents or business owners in the flood area needing assistance
may call 847-244-2940 to request assistance.

Resources are being setup today for the clean-up efforts that will
begin as the water recedes. There will be a need for many volunteers
once clean-up efforts are underway. The sandbags already in place will
need to be removed. Anyone wishing to volunteer for clean-up efforts is
asked to call the volunteer hotline at 847-599-7010.

Our next scheduled update will be at approximately 5:30 P.M. this
afternoon.

For Hydrological data on the Des Plaines River near Gurnee, IL. Please visit the the Advanced Hydrologic
Prediction Service website at:
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/ahps.cgi?lot&guni2&printable

I've talked to people from work who say that 132 is closed east of Hunt Club. East of Hunt Club is the main entrance to the park, Six Flags parkway. If Washington street is closed, the park must be closed.

All I can say is that the people who are in the park today, if it is open, must be getting some sweet re-rides.

Not necesarily it might just be the employee enterance that may be closed. The park is at a higher elevation.

The only other thing I would think that they would close the park down for is if a mass majority of the workers cannot make it because of the flood itself not because the park is flooded

i ive in the area and can tell you sfgam is not going to flood from the river. rt 132(grand ave) is closed east of rt 21(milwaukee ave). that is about a half mile east of the entrance to sfgam and about one mile east of I 94. rt 120 is closed from hunt club to oplaine rd south of the park. the east exit from I 94 is open, that is the alternate sfgam route. traffic on rt120, oplaine, washington, grand and milwaukee is a mess. if you come to the park plan for traffic delays even on i 94.

matt

Agreed that the park is at a substantially higher elevation. The employees can come in through the main gate if they need to. It's all connected.