Flooding is likely to get uglier
10:57 PM 6/11/04
Susan Lampert Smith Wisconsin State Journal

FORT ATKINSON - There's trouble in many of Wisconsin's river cities, and more rain this weekend is expected to increase the water problems. <

Portions of south-central Wisconsin's major river systems - the Fox, the Rock and the Wisconsin - were at or above flood stage Friday. <

Even if no more rain fell after Friday, cities along the Rock River were bracing for flood levels not seen in 25 years. Joe Nehmer, director of emergency management for Jefferson County, was concerned Friday when the National Weather Service upped its flood forecast for the Rock River by 2 feet, which would bring it to 12.6 feet in Jefferson by Thursday, almost 4 inches higher than the 1993 flood. <

The Rock River water had just begun to stabilize from heavy rains in late May. Along Lake Koshkonong, the 75 homes on Blackhawk Island have been evacuated for 10 days, and carp are swimming between homes on the lake's North Shore Road. <

"It looks like there's still a lot of water to move through Jefferson County," Nehmer said. Nehmer said that if the river at Jefferson doesn't peak until Thursday, Lake Koshkonong won't hit its peak until sometime the week of June 21. <

Some of that water is coming from Dodge County, where water that fell in a deluge Wednesday night and Thursday is still making its way into the Crawfish and Rock rivers. <

In Randolph, Police Chief Michael Klavekoske said the village drainage ditch was still overwhelmed by water Friday because a single pipe, 3 feet in diameter, drains the entire system. The water overflowed the ditch and flooded about 250 homes, including his own, and resulted in a local state of emergency. <

"I've been here 23 years, and I've never seen it like this," he said. Klavekoske said the area is hoping for a National Disaster Area declaration to help homeowners with low-cost loans. <

"The sad part is that I haven't talked to a single person who has flood insurance," Klavekoske said. "Whoever thought we'd have a flood here? We don't have a river or a lake." <

Still, Randolph residents, such as Jeff Christian who lives on Second Street, were cheered Friday as water levels began to drop. <

"Yesterday (the water level) was to the second step," he said, pointing to his front porch. Within 24 hours, the water level had dropped a foot and his lawn was visible. <

"This is amazing how far it's gone down," he said, although his basement was still full of water. <

Both the Red Cross and Salvation Army were in Randolph Friday to help. Randolph will hold a village meeting on the flooding at 7 p.m. Monday at a location to be announced. <

In nearby Cambria, village officials hoped a damaged earthen dam would hold. Under a state order, the spillway gates were opened to drain Tarrant Lake so that the dam can be inspected. <

Lois Frank, the Cambria village clerk, said village President Gary Nehring went above and beyond his elected role when he took time off from his job as an electrician to help fix the sewage treatment plant. <

There were worries about the sewage plant in Waupun Friday, as well. The Rock River there was 2 feet over flood stage and an overwhelmed sewer system was backing up water into hundreds of homes. <

Dennis Westhuis, Waupun utilities manager, said Friday night that industrial pumps rounded up by a local business, Municipal Well and Pump, saved the day. The city pumped water out of the sewers, bypassing the plant, and dumping "very, very diluted" untreated sewer water in the Rock River. <

"I think we're over the hump unless it rains again," Westhuis said. "It's been raining since the middle of May and it never dries up." <

Things were only getting worse Friday night in Marquette County, officials opened up the Harrisville dam's gates to ease pressure on the dam. <

"We're way over overflow mark in the dam," said Marquette County Deputy Fire Chief Greg Kemnitz. <

Once the floodgates were opened, some homes downstream on the Montello River took in water in basements and yards, but no structural damage occurred and the homes are safe for now, he said. <

To protect the Harrisville hydroelectric plant at the dam, 50 workers from neighboring fire departments used sandbags to create a temporary spillway. <

Kemnitz said that although the situation is stable now, more rain could dangerously elevate water levels. The Harrisville pond drains into the Fox River system, where the levels were already above flood stage in cities such as Berlin, Princeton and Oshkosh. <

In Fond du Lac and North Fond du Lac, police evacuated more than 200 people Friday as two creeks and a river swelled from rainwater. A portion of Highway 41 in Fond du Lac and Winnebago counties was closed due to flooding. <

Sauk County officials were keeping a close eye on the Baraboo River Friday. Corene Ederer-Sklar, county emergency management director, said the Baraboo River crested at 23 feet during the 1993 flood that caused major damage throughout the area. <

"It's expected to crest tonight (Friday) and reach about 20 feet," she said. "When the river goes flood stage, (water is) backing up into the fields and low lying areas." <

Ederer-Sklar said Narrows Creek is over its banks in some places and headed for Rock Springs, where it will connect with the Baraboo River. Several town roads throughout Sauk County have been closed due to flooding. <

In Dane County, officials Friday were close to imposing a 500-foot, slow-no-wake zone on the four major Madison-area lakes. If the water level on any of the lakes reaches a target elevation - and Lake Monona was within 0.15 feet of its target late Friday - the rule will go into effect for lakes Mendota, Monona, Waubesa and Kegonsa. The rule is designed to help prevent damage to flooded shorelines and property. <

Gov. Jim Doyle Friday asked the Federal Emergency Management Agency to evaluate new flood damage in Dodge and Clark counties and to reassess damage in Columbia and Fond du Lac following recent rains. <

Before Wednesday night's rain, the agency had already begun assessing Columbia, Crawford, Dodge, Fond du Lac, Grant, Jefferson, Kenosha, Ozaukee and Vernon counties, and found more than $5 million in damages to publicly owned structures such as roads, bridges and dams. <

"Many Wisconsin families and communities are desperately trying to protect their homes with sandbags and pumps as flood waters continue to rise," Doyle said. "I know the cleanup and assessment of damage may take time, and I hope that FEMA will continue to work with Wisconsin to make sure that all the damage is reported and that Wisconsin communities get the assistance they are entitled to." <

Contact Susan Lampert Smith at ssmith@madison.com or 252-6121. Lisa Schuetz of the Wisconsin State Journal; Katie Derksen of the Portage Daily Register; Dianna Mueller and Amanda Lutey of the Beaver Dam Daily Citizen; Scott De Laruelle of the Baraboo News Republic; and the Associated Press contributed to this report.