GRAFTON, Illinois — Brad Hagen just opened the doors of his new restaurant Abigail’s Taproom last week. But he’s already had to close it due to flooding.
“We've all had a good cry here and there,” Hagen said. “You put sweat and tears into your business and you work so hard to be successful and to provide for your family and your community.”
The basement where he keeps his flood is partially flooded. Hagen said he is thankful that a company, Sysco, donated a refrigerated truck where he could store the food. Grafton Oyster Bar, another restaurant he owns, is also closed.
“We just did financials the month of May and I did 12 percent of what I did May 2018,” Hagen said.
Grafton Mayor Rick Eberlin estimates the town has lost at least 80 percent of its revenue. Grafton is a tourist town, and the summer is its peak season.
“The financial impact is overwhelming,” Eberlin said. “We have about 500 people out of work.”
Instead of welcoming tourists, the town is welcoming a team from the National Guard. They are helping keep flood water away by shoring up a sandbag wall. But, the water is unrelenting, finding its way under the ground and through the town’s pipes and sewers.
“Our focus today is making sure the pumps continue to run,” Eberlin said Tuesday. “We've got all sorts of boil points. Water is going to seep through the paths of least resistance.”
The water is not yet to the level of the Flood of ’93. Hagen remembers it well, so he knows Grafton can recover.
“I am confident the customers will come back and support us once the flood is over,” Hagen said.
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