Quick Development of River Ice May Lead to Ice Jams

Ice on local rivers has developed this week in response to the recent cold snap. Favorable conditions for river ice, and possibly ice jams, will continue through the end of the week until temperatures gradually warm above freezing. Ice jams can develop near river bends, downstream of dams and upstream of bridges, mouths of tributaries or points where the river slope decreases. An ice jam will cause flooding upstream of where the ice jam has occurred, but a quick break up of the ice may lead to flooding downstream of where the ice jam was located.

Flooding from ice jams can occur with little to no warming, so it's important for those who live along the river to pay close attention to its level. For the latest on river levels across northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin, click here.