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Traffic Stops For Super-Sized Waves Hitting South Shore Drive

CHICAGO (CBS) -- The snow and arctic air aren't the only weather concerns.

CBS 2's Steven Graves has the story from the South Shore where it's been flooded for hours.

The flooding is not going away because of the waves that just keep pummeling the walls. Steady waves turned sidewalks into streams.

City crews worked in freezing temperatures, snow and water that was about a foot deep for hours.

They brought out pumps. Police closed down a block of South Shore Drive that borders the lake. Dozens of drivers had to find a new route. But Thomas Lynch had close look at the mess, as he carried on his work.

"It was pretty bad today," said Lynch. Crews said debris like leaves that blocked a roadside drain caused the flooding. They used the pumps to divert water to a main sewer.

The large puddles slowly went down. But the steady overflow from waves whipped up from the winds just made it that much harder to control.

Part of the southbound lane is still closed. Crews said they will be out until the waves calm down.

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