Water in your Portage home? Here's what to do right now.

Tell us where the water is, and we’ll plan the next step together.

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First: keep clear of wet outlets, close the main shutoff for a pipe leak, and photograph the damage before you move it. The full list is on our water damage page.

Where water showed up in Portage this year

In Portage, the overnight storm of June 22 left area roads under as much as six inches of standing water, and Salt Creek spilled onto I-94 in August.

June 22 brought the year’s lead report for Portage: at 12:50 AM CDT, in Portage, Spotter reports standing water on roads, with some area roads under up to 6 inches of standing water.

On August 9 at 6:00 PM CDT, another report about 1 mile west of Burns Harbor noted: Webcam images from the Indiana Department of Transportation showed standing water in a low lying spot of I-94 at the Salt Creek crossing. They also showed water covering West North Boo Road west of IN-149.

On June 17 at 4:15 PM CDT, another report about 2 miles northeast of Lake Station noted: Multiple public reports of roadway flooding in and near Portage.

Water that stands on Portage streets for a long stretch can work into window wells and lower levels. If your home sits near Salt Creek or a low corner, check the basement walls at the floor line.

The reports mention Salt Creek.

Sources: preliminary National Weather Service Local Storm Reports: Report 1 · Report 2 · Report 3

Your Portage home and where water goes

In Portage, the typical house dates to 1981. 32% were built before 1970, 39% in 1990 or later, and 70% are detached single-family homes, with 73% owner-occupied (ACS 2020–2024 5-year estimates: Census Reporter). Homes built in those decades often have a finished lower level over a slab, and water tends to appear first along the base of walls and under carpet.

Portage stretches from the lakeshore to the Little Calumet and Salt Creek corridors, with subdivisions from every decade in between. A 1950s ranch and a 2000s two-story take on water in very different ways.

Two streams define flood risk in Portage: Salt Creek, which runs north through the city, and the East Arm of the Little Calumet River. Both are mapped with 1% and 0.2% annual-chance floodplains and floodways in FEMA’s Porter County Flood Insurance Study, effective 2015, which Porter County’s stormwater department publishes. If your home sits near either one, Portage’s Building Department reviews any rebuild under its Flood Hazard Area Development Supplement, which asks for elevation documentation before work begins, so it pays to know your lot’s elevation before you choose finishes for a basement or lower level. Day to day, the City’s stormwater system of pipes, culverts, ditches, swales, inlets and detention ponds is run by the Stormwater Utility through Portage Utility Service’s Field Forces, and most land-disturbing work, including regrading, needs a City drainage and stormwater permit under the technical manual adopted June 6, 2024. Portage’s own stormwater FAQ explains why heavy rains hit harder as the city grows: rooftops, driveways and patios keep rain from soaking in, so more of it runs off, and faster.

Sources: Porter County Stormwater · City of Portage (1) · City of Portage (2) · City of Portage (3) · City of Portage (4)

Drying out a Portage home, step by step

Our Portage work follows one path: map the moisture, remove what can’t be properly dried, dry to verified readings, then turn the home over ready for repair work. Every reading and photo goes into your file. See how the process works.

If the water came through the roof, see roof repair in Portage.

According to the EPA, water-damaged areas should be dried within 24–48 hours to prevent mold; our moisture readings track that. (EPA: A Brief Guide to Mold, Moisture and Your Home) More in mold and drying.