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Unexplained odor baffles River Road travelers
Some Franklin Park residents have been complaining of an unusual smell along Des Plaines River Rd roughly between Ivanhoe and Robinson (Mark Lawton/Sun-Times Media)
Updated: July 29, 2012 6:35AM
An odor along River Road in Franklin Park has some resident’s curious and state agencies unsure.
“It’s as if something was left in a bucket of water for a long time and it was rotting,” e-mailed resident Jean Rak.
Rak has been noticing a smell for the last seven to eight months when she drives along River Road roughly between Ivanhoe and Robinson.
So has Ethyl Heckel.
“When it gets warm, its unbelievable,” Heckel said. “A stench is the word. I don’t know where it’s coming from.”
The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago also is stymied.
The MWRD has twice sent out engineers but “did not notice any odors during any of their visits,” e-mailed spokeswoman Allison Fore.
The Cook County Forest Preserve and Des Plaines River border that section of River Road to the east while local industry borders it on the west. There is also a sewer system that runs under Des Plaines River Road.
Rak said the odor is inconsistent.
“The smell comes and goes,” she e-mailed.
