Will County News

Will County residents likely associate Brandon Road with the bridge that provides an alternative to I-80 or the downtown Joliet bridges over the Des Plaines River-- the river that connects the Illinois River to the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, and, ultimately, Lake Michigan. The recent discovery of an Asian Carp nine miles from Lake Michigan in the Calumet River, however, has drawn attention to the Brandon Road Lock and Dam and its importance in the fight to keep Asian Carp from reaching the Great Lakes.  The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has completed a study regarding how the Brandon Road Lock and Dam could be improved to stop Asian Carp from continuing north on the Des Plaines.  The White House, however, has delayed the public release of that study. Map showing the Brandon Road Lock and Dam in relation to the presence of Asian Carps in the waters near Lake Michigan.  Map courtesy of Prairie Rivers Network, which created the map with data from ...

By Ann Baskerville Meteorologists and support staff at the National Weather Service Chicago's Station in Romeoville, Illinois monitor weather conditions 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to inform more than 10 million citizens in 23 counties of severe weather threats.   Matt Friedlein, Lead Forecaster for NWS Chicago, said that while technological advances have allowed for greater radar precision and more methods of relaying warning information since the Romeoville station opened in December 1991, the NWS Chicago's core mission remains the same: spreading the message of weather awareness and informing the public of severe weather threats.   Friedlein said weather awareness begins with citizens remaining aware of weather conditions capable of producing strong storms and tornadoes.  Using advanced computer models to analyze weather data, meteorologists can recognize the potential for severe weather in a region  days in advance .  For example, five days prior to the...