Flood in Saline County, Illinois

Over 16 million dollars in damage occurred to homes and businesses in Harrisburg due to disastrous flooding. Five homes and one business were considered destroyed. At least 30 homes and 44 businesses had water over the first floor. All three of the supermarkets in the city were closed due to flooding. Eighteen homes and three businesses reported water in the basement, though many others likely did not report basement flooding. About 300 residents of the city were evacuated, many to a Red Cross shelter. Emergency personnel evacuated at least one family from flooded areas outside the city. Many streets were closed in Harrisburg. U.S. Highway 45 was closed for days. Significant damage occurred to roads countywide. Four feet of water covered the basement of a church in Carrier Mills. Access to the local Harrisburg hospital was blocked by floodwaters, closing it for a short time. In Carrier Mills, 17 homes were flooded, five more had flooded basements, and vehicles and sheds were submerged. A major problem in Carrier Mills was contamination of the wells that supply public drinking water. Residents were urged to boil water before using it. Utilities were shut off to the hardest hit flood zones. A makeshift levee about seven feet tall was constructed on State Route 34 to protect parts of Harrisburg from renewed flooding of the Saline River. The levee worked, even though a vehicle drove through barricades and struck the levee. The main water line to Galatia broke, and residents were urged to boil their water. Near Stonefort, a railway was washed out. About 100 basements were flooded in Eldorado.

Torrential rainfall amounts from 6 to 12 inches occurred over a two-day period, causing an historic flood event. A very slow-moving cold front over southwest Illinois and southeast Missouri provided the focus for prolonged heavy rainfall. A deep southwest wind flow brought subtropical moisture across the frontal zone. Two-day rainfall amounts included 11.64 inches at Anna (Union County) and 11.50 inches at Galatia (Saline County). At the Carbondale airport, the two-day total was 6.61 inches. Other two-day totals included: 7.66 at Harrisburg, 7.53 at Mt. Carmel, and 10.50 at Du Quoin.