Awash, rinse, repeat
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| Ron Lingford assists flood victims |
Region reels from wind, record rainfall — and we're not done yet
By MEG JONES and AMY SILVERS
jsonline.com
Posted: June 9, 2008
Just as sodden residents mopped, cleaned and tried to dry out Sunday, another round of rains splashed down on southern Wisconsin, closing roads and bridges, canceling at least one high school graduation and creating a run on sump pumps and bleach.
Baseball diamonds turned into lakes, front lawns transformed into ponds and roads became rivers in parts of southeastern Wisconsin as the National Weather Service issued flood warnings Sunday afternoon for much of the southern half of the state. No deaths or serious injuries were reported.
There might not be much of a respite for the waterlogged. The National Weather Service is forecasting occasional showers and thunderstorms for today and tonight. Rain is also predicted for Tuesday.
Late Sunday, Gov. Jim Doyle declared a state of emergency for 29 counties, allowing deployment of National Guard troops. Many basements flooded either from backed-up drains filled with sewage and storm runoff or from rain pooling on saturated soil. Sump pumps suddenly became a hot commodity as numerous hardware stores sold out. Also hard to find: drain plugs and sandbags.
"Everything is in short supply," Ron Lingford of Lingford Construction said as he helped a flooded Oak Creek homeowner. "I went to three different hardware stores because we have a lot of basement drains backing up. I tried to find a pump and couldn't find one to save my life."
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