Calumet City flood: Residents with damaged homes call for help from city council after flash floods

CHICAGO (WLS) -- The city council meeting in Calumet City was packed Thursday night with concerned residents who said they still need help from the damage caused by flooding earlier this month.

"We're still in the midst of cleaning it up with our bare hands and without the assistance of anyone," one Calumet City resident said.

Another resident, Laaronia Alexander-Matthews, said she's looking at $20,000 worth of damage from flooding caused by two separate storms in September and June.

"I don't have a hot water tank, I don't know if my furnace is gone now," Alexander-Matthews said. "I've lost everything throughout my whole basement. I have to take my kids to their sister's house or a friend's home just to take a bath."

The heavy rain from the September 17 storm led to flash flooding, leaving entire neighborhoods underwater.

"We did not get into this overnight, and we will not get out of this overnight," Calumet City Mayor Thaddeus Jones said.

Mayor Jones issued a disaster declaration, which could entitle some residents to relief funds.

READ MORE | Calumet City flood: South suburban leaders call for help after flash floods cause damage

"There's a process that our residents can go through to start the restoration process in their homes," Calumet City spokesperson Sean Howard said. "$1 million for that particular effort. That effort is underway. If it goes beyond one million, this council will pay for it."

The city council vowed to get more funding from federal agencies into the hands of neighbors, while also working to improve an aging infrastructure system.

"We secured $100 million to deal with the root of the problem to stop the process at some point, but it's going to take three to five years to do that," Howard said. "This declining system is not only in Calumet City, it's the entire region."

Impacted neighbors at the meeting have been gathering signatures to petition the Governor JB Pritzker's office for more aid. City council leaders said they too are reaching out to both county and federal agencies for more help.