Although parts of the Kishwaukee River are nothing more than cracked riverbeds, these past weeks have proven Mother Nature is capable of surprise.

If the river was to flood, how would the city react?

The Kishwaukee River has flooded at least 10 times in the past, said NIU Staff Meteorologist Gilbert Sebenste.

Very heavy rain to the south side of the county, where the river headwater is located, causes levels to come up extremely quickly and flood, Sebenste said.

During the last flood on May 31, 2004, water got into the homes of residents on the south side of the city, Sebenste said. Joan Barringer, a resident of Dawn Court, DeKalb, had her basement flood in 1996. Her house survived, but she estimates the flood did about $20,000 of damage.

NIU has had its share of flooding.

During floods in 1983, water from the river rose as high as Davis Hall and flooded a considerable portion of the NIU campus. Since then, a levee has been put in place to divert the flow.

In times of heavy rain, the creek running through campus is susceptible to floods. It is narrow, and a lot of water can drain into it from the upstream pond located just north of Stevenson towers, Sebenste said.

“On an average day, three inches of rain in one hour would start flooding the creek and Neptune Hall would be affected,” he said.

With DeKalb’s history of floods, the city has taken some precautions against future flooding.

The city has taken a note of problem areas and expanded pipe sizing, DeKalb City Engineer Joel Maurer said. The sanitary pipes have been lined with epoxy resin to tighten them up and prevent back flow of water into residents homes.

Flood insurance is another way residents can protect themselves.

The National Flood Insurance Program underwrites all flood insurance in the United States, said Archie Bay, NFIP customer service representative.

Through this federal program, the maximum flood coverage any residential owner can get is $250,000 for a house and $250,000 for personal property stored above the basement, Bay said.