'Overflow Action Day Alert issued as severe storms roll across Chicago area' NBC 5

The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District issued an Overflow Action Day Alert on Friday afternoon as several rounds of strong to severe storms had already started to move in, with a severe thunderstorm watch in effect until 7 p.m. in several counties.

The first round of storms moved in over the lunch hour on Friday and was expected to continue through 3 p.m. A second round of storms is expected in the later afternoon and could last through Friday evening, prompting some suburbs to cancel their third of July fireworks shows.

Residents are asked to delay showers and baths, flush toilets less frequently and wait to run the dishwasher or washing machine amid the storms, according to the alert.

"Our staff is managing billions of gallons of water at our seven water reclamation plants and through our Tunnel and Reservoir Plan which is operating to protect our water environment and mitigate flooding," said MWRD President Kari K. Steele. "We encourage everyone to conserve water when possible to create more capacity in our systems."

A flash flood watch was also issued around 8:30 p.m. until 4 a.m. for virtually the entire Chicago area and northwest Indiana as excessive rainfall was expected across the region.