High water rescues, state of emergency follow nearly a foot of rain, flooding in Wisconsin
Heavy rain and severe storms led to life-threatening floods over Monday night into Tuesday as parts of southwestern Wisconsin woke up to dangerous conditions for the second time in August. Numerous residents were rescued from floodwaters while roads and highways were closed throughout the region.
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker declared a state of emergency for Fond du Lac, Juneau, La Crosse, Monroe, Vernon, and Washington Counties on Tuesday in response to the destructive flooding.
Radar showed nearly 12 inches of rain in some areas, according to AccuWeather Meteorologist Isaac Longley.
“It all began after rounds of heavy rain and thunderstorms rolled through the morning hours of Aug. 27,” Longley said. “After a break in the rain during the afternoon, a line of violent thunderstorms erupted over southern Minnesota and advanced eastward into Wisconsin, the same area where heavy rain had fallen just earlier in the day.”
In the early hours of Tuesday morning, two campers in the midst of a canoeing trip were rescued in Rockton after finding themselves in neck-high water levels. The Kickapoo River has flooded to near-record levels, according to the National Weather Service.
As of early Tuesday morning, the water had already reached 20.9 feet, well above the 16-foot flooding state. This is the second time in 2018 that the river has topped 16 feet.
Other rescues were made in La Crosse at the Brookview Mobile Home Park when water reached chest-high levels, and other homes in La Crosse by Highway 35 were also evacuated after flash flood warnings. Widespread evacuations were also carried out in Vernon County, where mudslides were reported. In Juneau County, four highways have been closed due to water flooding over the roadway.
Another round of flooding hit Wisconsin on Tuesday afternoon as severe thunderstorms unloaded torrents of heavy rain across the state. Flooding was reported in Green Bay after storms dropped over an inch of rain in just a few hours.
This is the second time this month residents in the region have faced flooding. Recent flooding in Dane County killed one resident after more than 10 inches of rain fell.
The heavy rains from earlier this month also contributed to the current flooding as much of the ground has remained too saturated to absorb any of the new rain.
Flood waters rush through a damaged street in Black Earth, Wis., on Tuesday, Aug. 21, 2018. Torrential rains caused widespread flash-flooding around the state's capital city of Madison, forcing evacuations and knocking out power.
Longley said this recent rain can be traced to a source hundreds of miles farther south.
“With ample tropical moisture from the Gulf of Mexico in place over the Upper Midwest, several more rounds of heavy rainfall occurred during the late evening and overnight as the thunderstorms stuck around,” he said. “At this point, flash flooding had started taking place in and around La Crosse, Wisconsin, with some rivers and streams near record levels.”
Longley added that rain is expected to continue falling throughout Tuesday, as another 2 to 4 inches are anticipated. A flood watch for impacted regions will remain in place until Wednesday morning.
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