Cleanup continues
By the Daily Times staff
Wednesday, June 11, 2008 12:55 PM CDT
| |
| Austin Henneberry is pictured making his way down Garden Road in the town of Shields trying to get his jeep to higher ground. The road is closed with over 30 inches of water over 90 percent of its length. Three homes are located at the end of the road that are now on a virtual island on the Crawfish River. (Photo by Mike Henneberry) |
Emergency management coordinators are keeping an eye to the sky today while cleanup efforts continue in the flood ravaged areas of Dodge County.
State and local officials are monitoring various river dams in the county where high water from days of rainstorms threatened to make them give way.
None of the dams in the county are in any type of danger for breaching or collapse, according to Joseph Meagher, director of emergency management in Dodge County. There has been no damage or break in the Lowell dam, just high water dealt with appropriately to prevent damage, Meagher said.
“Things are leveling out for us and by tomorrow we are anticipating that everything will peak,” Meagher said.
“Columbus (located on the west edge of Dodge County) has not had a rise in water levels,” Meagher said. “As a matter of fact, it has gone down a couple of inches according to the mayor at our briefing this morning,” Meagher said.
The city of Columbus was hit hard with the deluge of rain this past weekend. State Highway 16/60 has been closed due to the high water on the Crawfish River which is now rushing its way into Dodge and Jefferson counties.
That river had swollen so much Tuesday night that it closed state Highway 19 in Hubbleton this morning. Large trees and logs are backed up against the train crossing near Hubbleton that the river is overflowing the banks and flooding the small community which borders Dodge and Jefferson counties. Some people have been evacuated from the area, he said.
Dodge County emergency management continues to operate its emergency operations center around the clock to keep track of changing weather and road conditions, Meagher said.
Thursday's forecast of rain is a concern for local officials, Meagher said. A conference call was set for this morning with the National Weather Service for the most update information on an impending storm, he said. “It is looking up for us if we don't get additional rain,” the emergency management director said.
Most waterways in Dodge County are expected to reach its crest at midday Thursday, Meagher said, “but that is hard to say.”
As of Tuesday afternoon, the emergency operations center had taken about 240 calls from concerned citizens regarding flood damage and road conditions.
Meagher said they have received 88 damage reports that have been received through the online form. Citizens can report any damage they may have sustained by accessing the form at www.co.dodge.wi.us.
With the cooperation of the Wisconsin National Guard, a damage assessment flyover was completed at 9 a.m. Tuesday. Meagher, county board Chairman Russell Kottke, Sheriff Todd Nehls, Columbus Mayor Nancy Osterhaud, Columbus police chief and state Department of Natural Resources hydrologist Brenda Hill participated in the flyover to assess the damage throughout the county and city of Columbus.
U.S. Highway 151 at the crossroad with state Highway 73 was closed Tuesday due to high water, but has been reopened today, according to the Wisconsin State Patrol.
Sandbag operations continue on the Lowell dam and in the city of Columbus, Meagher said. Huber prisoners are being used to fill sandbags at the county's highway department, he said.
The river flow over the dam in Lowell has subsided since Tuesday night, Meagher said. “I was advised by one of the officers that checked on the dam this morning that he believes the level had decreased over night because some of the cables he could not see yesterday he can see this morning.”
According to emergency management personnel in Beaver Dam, Beaver Dam Lake levels have not changed on the south side, but had risen some on the north side of the lake. “That occurred due to the influx from Fox Lake,” Meagher said. The Beaver Dam River is rising and is up under some buildings in downtown Beaver Dam, he said.
“We are trying to keep a happy balance of what comes through the dam and through the river and coordinate with Beaver Dam to keep Lowell in a satisfactory state,” Meagher said.
Local municipalities continue to monitor dam conditions as well as structural conditions and reported no deficiencies as of Tuesday night, Meagher said.
Columbus currently has 42 residents within Dodge County without power. There have been 46 residents in Dodge County that have been evacuated due to high water safety concerns. The American Red Cross continues to assist those evacuated with shelter and other immediate needs.
Citizens reporting road conditions or seeking additional information can contact the Dodge County emergency operations center at 386-4060.
According to Watertown city Engineer Joe Radocay, the level of the Rock River at the United States Geological Survey gauge south of the lower dam has gone down about 20 inches since Monday morning, when the river crested at a record 7.2 feet.
As of this morning, the Rock River south of the lower dam was at 5.6 feet, which is below the moderate flood stage of 6 feet, Radocay said. A minor flood stage is considered to be at 5.5 feet.
If it rains in the near future, Watertown Mayor Ron Krueger is asking residents to reduce their water usage as much as possible, which includes washing vehicles, flushing toilets unnecessarily and doing laundry.
“The treatment plant is really struggling to keep up and catch up and we are just concerned that the more water that goes into the system, the quicker the rivers and streams will rise again,” Krueger said.
According to Kevin Freber, assistant water systems manager, the city's wastewater treatment plant treated 21.5 million gallons of water between 7 a.m. Tuesday and 7 a.m. today. On an average, the city's wastewater plant treats about 3.5 millions gallons per day.
Popular Searches
