Open Flood Gate Caused I-80 I-94 Flood

Last month's Borman Expressway flooding was caused by an open flapgate that allowed water from the Little Calumet River to block a major national east-west highway -- I-80 & I-94, reports the Northwest Indiana Times.

An open flapgate to the drainage system on the east side of Kennedy Avenue is believed to have contributed to last month's massive flooding on the Borman Expressway, officials said Monday.

The flapgate is designed to open and close automatically in response to the level of the Little Calumet River, according to representatives of the Little Calumet River Basin Development Commission and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The flapgate didn't close as it should have to stop the flow of the rising river, they said. And a backup system north of the flapgate, known as a sluice gate, was not closed until Tuesday, five days after the Borman was closed to traffic.

Borman Expressway Flood I-80 I-94 Little Calumet River US Army Corps of Engineers