Historical Timeline Of Cahokia Heights, IL Floods

1699: Holy Family Church founded the oldest in Cahokia and Midwest, this church center of the community survived fires, floods, and rebuilding efforts.

1810: Jarrott Mansion built the strongest built this shows how early on they built their houses to last unlike the modern homes.

1890: The Illinois Central Railroad buys tracks around Centreville.

1892: Flood of 1892 (First recorded flood) the early signs of the flooding problems caused because the town built near the Mississippi River and the land is low, so it starts to flood anytime it rains or the river overflows

IMAGES SOURCE : FROM THE ARCHIVE “Images of America CAHOKIA” by Denita Reed

1903: The Great Flood of 1903(The Great Flood of 1903 was a massive flooding event that struck the Midwest, especially Kansas, after weeks of heavy rain caused rivers like the Kansas River to overflow). brings forward the proposition of the Metro-East Sanitary District Levees and the proposition is carried out.

1957: Cahokia has heavy rain and floods again in streets and by homes.

IMAGE SOURCE : FROM THE ARCHIVE “Images of America CAHOKIA” by Denita Reed

1976: Commonfields of Cahokia Public Water District buys Centreville Township’s sewage system and continues to manage both tap water and wastewater for the Township.

1986: The American Bottoms Wastewater Treatment Plant is opened to treat municipal wastewater from surrounding municipalities, including parts of the City and Township of Centreville.

1988-90: Problems with the East St. Louis sewer system, to which centreville’s sewer system is tied, make national news. U.S. EPA sues East St. Louis for misuse of federal sewer money; St. Clair County State’s Attorney and East Side Health District sue City for sewage failures.

1993: A year of heavy flooding greatly damages the St. Louis area levees and causes damage to local sewer systems.

1994: East St. Louis public works director blames flooding impacting East St. Louis, Centreville and Washington Park partly on failure to clean and dredge Harding Ditch.

2002: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers notifies then Mayor Seaberry that I-255 is a barrier to water flow between the 63rd Street area of Centreville and Harding Ditch.

2003: The takeover of the Centreville-Alorton Sewer District by Commonfields of Cahokia is announced, along with the need for extensive emergency repairs due to failure to clean and grease sewer pumps.

2007: FEMA notifies the Metro East levee district that the levees will lose accreditation unless significant problems with underseepage and other issues are addressed.

2009: Illinois EPA issues plan identifying Harding Ditch as failing to meet water quality standards for fecal coliform.

2013: Heavy rainfall and flooding results in emergency rescue of six families in neighborhood of 40-45 homes off of State Street near the I-255 exit.

2019: St. Clair County again recognizes that runoff originating from the bluff areas to the east of the American Bottoms contribute markedly to flooding, ponding, and soil wetness.

Feb. 20, 2020: Residents Centreville Illinois are dealing with constant flooding and raw sewage coming into their homes and yards because of old pipes and bad drainage. They have spent lots of money on repair but nothing has changed. People suing the city and utilities for real fixes. Government leaders and the Illinois EPA are starting to pay attention, but residents feel forgotten.

July 28, 2020: Senators Tammy Duckworth and Dick Durbin asked the EPA to help Centreville because the flooding and sewage are a public health crisis. The mostly Black low-income community faces unsafe water and poor infrastructure. The senators want laws enforced and real repairs done soon.

Nov. 3, 2020: The cities of Cahokia, Centreville, and Alorton consider combining to form “Cahokia Heights.” Supporters think joining will bring more state money to fix roads, sewers, and flooding, helping create a stronger healthier community.

Feb. 11, 2021: Flooding and sewage continue in Centreville destroying homes and creating terrible smells. Residents say their mostly Black low-income town has been ignored for years and more people sues to force repairs.

March 8, 2021: Governor J.B. Pritzker supports a $22 million FEMA grant to fix the flooding and the sewage crisis calling it “environmental racism.” People hope the funding will finally lead to repairs but worry it could take too long or be misused.

March 23, 2021: The Illinois EPA gives nearly $1 million to HeartLands Conservancy to plan fixes for flooding in Cahokia, Alorton, and Centreville. The plan focuses on listening to residents and improving sewers but the residents worry it’s too slow and won’t cover all the damage.

April 6, 2021: Residents of Cahokia, Alorton, and Centreville vote to combine their towns but even after the vote many say the sewage and flooding problems still haven’t been fixed.

May 6, 2021: The three cities officially merge into Cahokia Heights. The new mayor Curtis McCall Sr. gave his word to fix sewers, roads, and safety issues. The city applies for a $22 million FEMA grant to help fund the repairs.

July 2021: Cahokia Heights is denied the $22 million FEMA grant. Residents are mad and frustrated because the city is still flooding, and leaders say they’ll need to find other ways to fix the problems.

July 20, 2021: A resident’ group called Centreville Citizens for Change files another lawsuit against Cahokia Heights and Commonfields of Cahokia for violating the Clean Water Act by dumping sewage into the community.

Aug. 2, 2021: The U.S. EPA orders Cahokia Heights and Illinois American Water to increase testing and improve the water system because sewage spills could contaminate drinking water.

Aug. 16, 2021: The U.S. EPA orders Cahokia Heights to repair its sewer system.

Aug. 3, 2022: Governor Pritzker gave a $9.9 million state grant to help fix Cahokia Heights’ sewer problems.

Aug. 15, 2022: Senator Durbin helped get $28 million in federal funding for Cahokia Heights and the money from COVID relief funds and for watershed planning.

July 27, 2023: The EPA reports the progress. Illinois American Water finished its required repairs and monitoring in part of Cahokia Heights. But most of the city’s water system is still under EPA supervision and still needs more work.

Aug 5, 2023: A Washington University study finds that Cahokia Heights residents face health risks from sewage and flooding, including bacteria linked to ulcers and cancer. Sewage contamination has become a major health danger in Cahokia Heights.

December 10, 2024: Cahokia Heights, Illinois must fix $30 million worth of sewage fix because it has spilled sewage hundreds of times since 2019. The plan the state and the federal government made gives the city until 2035 to finish the repairs. The residents are upset because they been dealing with this problem for too long and want the problems fixed sooner. Raw sewage floods streets and by homes.