Hurricane Ike: We’re All Connected

When it was all over, six people were dead, expressways remained flooded in every direction, 1,000 people were evacuated, schools closed and Illinois Gov. Rod Blagoevich had declared seven counties in Illinois as emergency areas.

When meteorologists started talking about the “massive hurricane” heading toward Texas and the Gulf region, most of us in the Midwest were interested, but not overly concerned. Let’s face it, tornadoes, windstorms and flooding are the “accepted” catastrophes of the middle states we live in.

But after the devastating hit to Galveston and Houston, with all of its flooding and destruction shown on the air waves, the news media tucked in a new message. This message was that soon the aftermath of Hurricane Ike would head into Louisiana, then up through the central states of Missouri, Indiana and Illinois. And the news media met its mark with this prediction.

In Illinois and northern Indiana it began raining on Sept. 13 and 14 and it didn’t stop until Monday morning, Sept. 15. When it was all over, six people were dead, expressways remained flooded in every direction, 1,000 people were evacuated, schools closed and Illinois Gov. Rod Blagoevich had declared seven counties in Illinois as emergency areas. Rainfall amounts hit a record high with 10 inches falling in a 24 hour period. (See page 46 in this issue for “Ike’s Wrath Hits Midwest; 1,000 Evacuated, Roads Closed”)

The governor’s office in Illinois said the following actions had been taken:

• 130,000 sandbags, barricades and several water pumps delivered by Illinois Department of Transportation trucks to affected areas;
• Two boats and several Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) conservation officers to assist with evacuations, rescues and security;
• Flood surveillance crews from IDNR are surveying water levels in streams and rivers and assessing dams; and
• Two IEMA regional coordinators were deployed to the Cook County Emergency Operations Center to coordinate requests for state assistance, and additional IEMA staff is being dispatched to the area.

The damage to homes, roadways and schools because of the flooding is a situation Midwesterners have faced before. There is no comparison to be made with areas hit directly by Hurricane Ike. But in this instance, the toll on this region is so closely connected to the horrible destruction in the region of Texas and Louisiana, few can ignore it. The flooding and devastation of September 13 and 14 in the Midwest reminds us once again, as before, that despite the size of our country and differences in local weather — we are, indeed, all connected.

Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Flood Hurricane Illinois