Published: Aug. 31, 2018
West Bend, Hartford see record rain totals
By Nicholas Dettmann
ndettmann@conleynet.com 262-306-5043
WEST BEND — Some spots in Washington County
broke records with this week’s rainfall totals and others just missed,
according to data provided by the National Weather Service on Thursday.
Ben Miller, a meteorologist from the National
Weather Service’s Milwaukee office in Sullivan, said West Bend received more
than 11 inches of rain the last several days making this month the wettest
August on record.
Hartford also broke its rainfall record for
the month with 10.5 inches. The previous mark was 9.4 in 2007.
Richfield/Colgate and Germantown has its
second-wettest August on record at 9.47 inches and 9.44 inches, respectively.
The previous marks in those municipalities is 11.03 and 10.77, respectively —
both in 2007.
The monthly rain total for most of Washington
County before Aug. 15 was around a half-inch.
Miller said the reason for the heavy amounts
of rain is attributed to a moist atmosphere and the storms continuing to hover
in the region.
“At this time of the year, it’s not all that
uncommon,” Miller said about the heavy rain in the region. “But it’s not night
after night after night.”
With all the storm damage, including heavy
downpours, flooding and tornadoes, Gov. Scott Walker, on Wednesday, declared a
statewide State of Emergency.
“After the latest round of continuing storms
and their tremendous impact in Wisconsin, we have declared a statewide State of
Emergency,” Walker said in a news release. “We are ready to provide any tools
and resources necessary to impacted communities. I thank all of those who continue
to work diligently to help those in need.”
On Tuesday evening, Walker declared a State of
Emergency for several counties throughout Wisconsin, including Washington and
Fond du Lac. That declaration came about a week after the same declaration was
made for the Madison-area after that region saw heavy rainfall.
Joshua Schoemann, Washington County
administrator, said when a State of Emergency declaration is made, it begins a
process for possible funding assistance for local governments from state and/or
federal governments.
“This is a key to unlock the door,” Schoemann
said.
Federal and state officials will evaluate the
damage in affected areas and make a determination of which areas qualify for
assistance and for how much.
For now, consumers are recommended to work with
their respective insurance companies to immediately address any damage from the
storms. If and when funding is available, reimbursement options could be made
available.
“It’s kind of wait and see,” Schoemann said.
“The state acknowledged there is an emergency,”
he added. “They have to evaluate the level of that emergency.”
On Thursday, Walker was scheduled to tour the
damaged areas in Dodge and Fond du Lac counties. It’s unknown if he’ll do the
same in Washington County.
On Tuesday, severe weather
roared through Washington County, taking out
power to more than 3,000 customers with downed power lines and trees throughout
the county. Dodge and Fond du Lac counties were hit with seven tornadoes at
around 4:10 p.m. in and around the Brownsville and Lomira area.
Most of the tornadoes were EF-1s, but one in
Brownsville was named an EF-2, which is a scale meteorologists use to measure
the intensity of a twister, such as its wind speed.
The EF-2 touched down on Highway 49 west of
Brownsville near West Line Road and traveled nearly 4 miles northeast, through
the northern part of Brownsville, and ending near the Highway 175 and Highway Y
intersection, just west of Interstate 41 in Fond du Lac County.
The width, according to NWS’ data, was 150
yards and estimated peak winds were 125 mph.
Another tornado went through the heart of
downtown Brownsville and was identified as EF-1 with estimated windspeed of 107
mph. It traveled northeast, near the Quad/Graphics plant in Lomira, for 2.7
miles, ending just short of I-41.
The other twisters were all in Fond du Lac
County — Alto, Oakfield and three in South Byron. Their duration was short. The
Alto twister lasted about 1.17 miles while the others were 1 mile or less.
There are no reports of injuries or fatalities.
It appears the severe weather is over, but some
rain is expected to move into the region tonight and be scattered throughout
the next several days.
“I know that’s not what people want to hear but
that’s what it looks like,” Miller said.
The Wisconsin Department of Military Affairs
said Wednesday private property owners should report flood and storm damage by
calling 2-1-1 or 877-947-2211.
“Make sure to document damage by taking
pictures and speak with your insurance agent,” the department said.
Multiple resources designed to help residents
with their recovery efforts is being posted online at //readywisconsin.wi.
gov/flooding/AUG2018.asp.
Schoemann urged residents to “Be patient as you
can. Keep working on cleaning things up. Hopefully we can move the state and
federal (governments) as fast as we can.”
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