Levee Trespassers Arrested
By: Import User
Updated: June 19, 2008
No trespassing signs in Mt. Carmel, Illinois are no joke. Twenty-five people were arrested between Friday and Sunday for violating signs posted at the towns levee. The levee protects dozens of homes from the flooded Wabash River. Town officials say when Mt. Carmel flooded in 2005, they noticed the top of the levee softened. To keep the levee from becoming damaged, theyve posted signs to keep pedestrians, bikes and four-wheelers off of the saturated land. Theyre also protecting residents from slipping into the river and drowning. Two boys were pulled to safety earlier this week; both are okay. Mayor Tom Meeks says the levee is a "lifeline" for about 15% of the homes and residents in Mt. Carmel, but the remaining 85% are typically unaffected.
