Two lines of severe thunderstorms pushed through South Central Illinois on Tuesday bringing considerable rain and flooding in low lying areas.
The Salem Water Plant recorded 2.41 inches of rain and the Centralia Water Plant 1.61 inches.
One gate of Raccoon Lake is open four feet to get rid of excess water, enough to cause flooding downstream along the Brick Hill Road. All the Salem Township Roads that cross the Crooked Creek Bottoms are impassable, including Robin, South College, South Hotze, South Hoots Chapel and Westline Road.
The most serious damage was a large tree that fell into a house on Meadow Lane on Raccoon Lake.
Numerous downed tree limbs became entangled with power lines during the morning storm in the Centralia, leaving 1,600 Ameren customers in the Centralia without power. Some didn’t have power restored until late Tuesday afternoon.

A tree causes heavy damage to a home on Meadow Lane on Raccoon Lake. Photo by PJ Norville