Rauner to visit flood-affected areas

Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner will return home early from a family vacation to visit flood-affected counties, his office announced on Wednesday.

Rauner has been vacationing in an undisclosed country and will be returning to Springfield on Thursday evening, three days earlier than expected. His office announced Rauner will then spend the coming days in central and Southern Illinois viewing flood damage, but declined to release specifics.

"While the rains have stopped, we're continuing to see more communities battling floodwaters in order to protect their residents and critical facilities," Rauner said in the release. "The State of Illinois will continue to support these local efforts with personnel and resources throughout this flood event."

Also on Wednesday, Rauner added five more counties to the state disaster declaration he signed on Tuesday as a result of widespread flooding. The declaration allows for a variety of state resources to be used at the local level - including sandbags, pumps and heavy equipment.

The counties of Alexander, Christian, Clinton, Douglas and Morgan were added to the list of 12 that also contains <span>Calhoun, Jackson, Jersey, Madison, Monroe, Randolph and St. Clair. The State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) in Springfield was activated Monday morning to coordinate the state's flood response.</span>

<span>The SEOC will remain open until the threat has passed.</span>

<span>Randolph County received more than seven inches of rain as a result of the Christmas Day weekend storm and flood levels on the Mississippi River are still rising toward a predicted crest of 47.5 feet at Chester - the second-highest crest in recorded history - on Jan. 2.</span>

Rauner has yet to visit Randolph County since being elected governor. He made a campaign stop at Gilster-Mary Lee in Chester in June 2014.

Rauner was scheduled to visit the World Shooting and Recreational Complex as part of his "Turnaround Agenda" tour last fall, but storms in northern Illinois canceled that visit.