Why I-190 flooded at O'Hare -- and what IDOT plans to do about it

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Delays and cancellations weren't the only concern for people traveling through O'Hare International Airport after storms swept through Chicago. Flooded streets forced some passengers to walk to the nation's second busiest airport.

Floodwaters closed in on the only public artery leading to O'Hare when the pumps failed early Tuesday morning after storms dumped rain on the area Monday night. Only one lane of I-190 remained opened at Mannheim, causing a traffic nightmare at the cloverleaf bowl.

On a scale of 1 to 10, Mary Gutman said her frustration was a 20.

"I can't believe a little flood causes such a huge problem. Why weren't

they out here at 4am unplugging the sewers?" Gutman asked. She missed her flight to Boston.

Plugged storm sewers were not the problem. Around 5 a.m. Tuesday, power fluctuations occurred at a brand new pumping station just a stone's throw from flooded I-190. That led to malfunctions in the control equipment that opens the pumps and one-by-one, the backup systems failed.

"We lost six of seven pumps" Steve Travia, Illinois Department of Transportation, said.

Each of five main pumps in the station is capable of pushing 22,000 gallons of water a minute into the Des Plaines River. However, after the power fluctuations, computer controls started shutting down the pumps. Despite redundant backup systems, the station failed. Once they were brought back up around 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, the water was gone.

"The pumps are running, so the system is reset. But if all else fails, it'll be manned during all storm events in the future," Travia said. "Until we are confident it can run, there'll be a human being monitoring it."

Meanwhile at O'Hare, airlines played catchup following Monday's cancellations and delays. On Tuesday, more than 100 flights were canceled at ORD while a dozen others were canceled at Midway Airport. No other major delays were reported Tuesday afternoon, according to the Department of Aviation.