Will County News

  The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) released a press release on August 8, 2024 announcing lane closures on the Cass Street bridge over the Des Plaines River in downtown Joliet starting on August 12, 2024.   Joliet's rolling lift bridges over the Des Plaines River downtown are kept busy with frequent barge trips on the river, as seen here .  IDOT stated the reason for the lane closures is corrosion of the bridge's structural steel. IDOT press release from August 8, 2024: " The Illinois Department of Transportation announced today that the Cass Street (U.S. 30) bridge over the Des Plaines River, in Joliet, will be reduced from three lanes to one indefinitely beginning, weather permitting, Monday, Aug. 12. The lane closures are due to corrosion of the structural steel on portions of the bridge, discovered during a recent evaluation. The current posted weight restrictions on the bridge will remain in place. A project to rehabilitate the bridge is anticipated to

 Lion Electric announced their operating and financial results for the second quarter of the 2024 earnings year on July 31, 2024. The company also announced an "Action Plan" to reach profitability.  Action plan items of relevance to Joliet include: - "a reduction of the Company's workforce by 30% (representing approximately 300 employees) across Canada and the United States and impacting all areas of the organization, which is expected to be implemented over the upcoming days and will result in mostly temporary lay offs (such initiative being expected to result in annualized costs savings for the Company of up to approximately $25 million, assuming that employees temporarily laid off are not re-hired);" -a process to optimize usage of the Company's facilities, including the potential sublease of a significant portion of its Joliet Facility and certain experience centers throughout Canada and the United States;"

  Strong storms blew down power lines near the Exxon Mobil Refinery onto Interstate 55 late Monday night.  I-55 is still closed and according to this morning's post from the Illinois State Police Troop 3's Facebook page, (below) will remain closed for 12 to 24 hours: Last night, the Village of Elwood also posted on their Facebook page that the downed power lines caused the ExxonMobil oil refinery to lose power.  The plant " lost power and had to release via the flare stacks. They are not able to quell the odor without  power."

Bicentennial Park in Joliet will celebrate with music before fireworks at 9:30 p.m. on July 3, 2024 along the Des Plaines River. Go to the Park's Facebook page here for full details. Fireworks along the Des Plaines River in Joliet

On July 1, 2024, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Rock Island District, announced that the District and the States of Illinois and Michigan had signed a partnership agreement for the Brandon Road Interbasin Project.   The Brandon Road Lock and Dam,  shown partially in the video below, is viewed as a critical pinch point for stopping invasive carp from entering Lake Michigan and the Great Lakes: The signed partnership agreement "allows $274 million in federal funding, including $226 million provided by President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and $114 million in state funding to be used for construction of the first of three construction increments of the $1.15 billion project designed to prevent the upstream movement of aquatic nuisance species into the Great Lakes" according to the Army Corps' press release . The Brandon Road Interbasin Project will consist of acoustic and electric deterrents, along with a leading edge bubbler and a flushing lock, according to

The Will County Health Department has confirmed a second positive measles case in Will County.   The Department has also shared that the Ascension St. Joseph Hospital Emergency Department was a site where possible exposure may have occurred on April 2nd between 1:00 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.. Full release from the health department: " The Will County Health Department’s Communicable Disease staff is working to collect additional details to identify and notify people that may have been exposed to measles, provide education, and recommend appropriate measures. Additionally, the WCHD is in close contact with the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) as the active investigation continues. The WCHD has identified the following public location where possible exposure may have occurred. Members of the public who were at the following location at the listed date and time may have been exposed: Ascension Saint Joseph Hospital – Emergency Department  (333 Madison St. – Joliet, IL 60435) –