Dam causing a back-up?

(By Laura Gibbs-13 News)

People whose homes and yards are flooded because of the rising waters of the Rock River want Winnebago County to take action.

There really aren't too many options. Dynamite is too dangerous so there's really no plan except to wait and see what Mother Nature's up to next.

Since the river water spilled over, the Winnebago County Emergency Operations Center(CEO) gets hundreds of calls daily.

ESDA Director Denny Lolli says, "Most of the folks that call want to know when the river may crest, when this might go down. Just generally good questions. I mean people are concerned."

Lolli says the worst ice back-ups are between the Fordham Dam and Chestnut Street Bridge, an area near the Ralston Bridge and in Roscoe near Edgemere Terrace.

Chief Deputy Kurt Ditzler with Winnebago County says, "It's something that is just going to occur till the conditions change."

Ditzler spent Thursday on the phone with the Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Both completed extensive research on ice jams.

Ditzler says, "Everything that they have attempted or tried show that there is really nothing the mechanical kind of intervention that really is success full. They've gone all the way from heavy equipment like back hoes and track hoes, a explosives and there really is nothing that is going to be effective."

And Ditzler doesn't think the Fordham dam is causing the back-ups. He goes on to say, "I don't think the Fordham dam has that big of effect on it. A lot of the ice formations occur around bridges or where the river has changes in direction, the bends of sand bars."

Winnebago County has extra officers working this weekend since there could be more problems. The ice hasn't been this bad since the 1980's.