ST. CLAIR COUNTY, Ill. — Flood relief may be on the way for residents of St. Clair County, in and around the new town of Cahokia Heights, Illinois.
A 100-year-old drainage system has attracted the attention of federal lawmakers. On Friday, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., toured the Harding Ditch, a 14-mile stretch of drainage system that often does not drain properly.
“We believe it was probably named after President Harding and was probably built about the time he was president 100 years ago," Durbin said. "But we’re still using this ditch to have the storm water flow away from these communities.”
Water problems around the former towns that make up Cahokia Heights — Centreville, Alorton and Cahokia — are well documented. Residents said a few inches of rain is enough to flood some streets with water and sewage.
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Joseph Jackson is a resident of the town formerly known as Centreville.
“If it rains two or three days straight, we get flooded out and I have to go to a hotel,” he said.
East St. Louis resident Ethel White agreed.
“I’m just fed up with nothing being done, and that my home is in such bad shape," she said. "I’ve got mold issues. I’ve got flooring issues.”
Angela Harlan’s elderly mother lives in East St. Louis.
“Practically my mother has lost her belongings more than four times, in totality,” Harlan said.
Durbin said he has partnered with Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill.
"We’re going to do a joint effort here to try to help all the communities, but we’re starting with Cahokia Heights, to find out if there are resources we can bring in here,” he said.
Durbin said he is hesitant to discuss a timeline on when the resources, some of which come from FEMA, might become available.
“I can tell you this,” Durbin said, “our commitment is real. It represents federal, state and local commitment to solving the problem. We have resources we’ve not had before. It’s a more hopeful situation than I’ve seen during the time I have served in the Senate.”
Engineers have previously said sewer work along the 14-mile stretch of Harding Ditch is a project that could take several years.