SPRINGFIELD, IL – Illinois State Senator Terri Bryant (R-Murphysboro) is calling for urgent state intervention to address a rapidly deteriorating scour hole in the Stringtown Levee in rural Monroe County. The worsening damage has raised concerns from local, state, and federal officials about the imminent risk of levee failure, which could have catastrophic consequences for the region.
Last week, Senator Bryant joined State Representative David Friess in sending a letter to Governor JB Pritzker urging him to direct the Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA) to immediately deploy resources, coordinate with federal partners, and secure the funding necessary to stabilize the levee.
“A breach of this levee would threaten lives, homes, farms, and the economic stability of communities in Monroe, Randolph, and surrounding counties,” said Senator Bryant. “We have seen the devastation that levee failures can cause, and we must act now to prevent it from happening here.”
Officials from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have described the erosion site as “unsustainable” and “approaching failure,” with an erosion zone larger than a football field and water dangerously close to the levee’s base. If the levee fails, more than 45,000 acres and hundreds of homes could flood, potentially causing hundreds of millions of dollars in damage. Senator Bryant says repairing the scour hole now is estimated to cost a fraction of the damage that would result from a full levee breach.