2010 flood damage doesn't compare to '08, officials say
Still, Brookfielders left wringing out drenched homes
July 28, 2010 | 1 comment
Last week's torrential rains pounded Brookfield, causing dozens of flooding problems and a handful of sewer backups, but the damage was not as significant as a similar rainstorm in June 2008, city officials said.
Public Works Director Tom Grisa said the city received about 3 inches of rain in the first hour of the July 22 storm. That's a quicker pace than was seen in the 2008 storm, but rainfall totals for both storms were about 6 inches.
As of about noon Tuesday, the city had received about 60 calls about problems caused by stormwater flooding and about 18 or so sewer backups, but, Grisa said, there likely are more cases out there.
"We can only count what's reported (to us)," he said.
Still, Grisa said, the number of homes affected was substantially lower this year than in 2008 - 1,300 reports of flooding and backups came in that year. This year, the city did not have far-reaching power outages, and that likely played a part in reducing the overall impact of the storm.
"For those people who were affected, it's still a devastating experience," Mayor Steve Ponto said.
The city has spent tens of millions of dollars over the last decade to help address problems in areas of the city that experienced flooding and sanitary sewer backups during storms in the late 1990s and in 2008 and 2009.
"I think this storm 10 years ago would have been really devastating to the city," he said.
Grisa said homeowners deserve credit for doing what they can to help prevent water problems at their homes, such as properly grading near their foundations and cleaning out their gutters.
"They've really helped themselves and I think helped their neighbors out by doing so," he said.
Waukesha County plans to submit an application to the Federal Emergency Management Agency by the end of this week for potential emergency funding, Ponto said.
Calls for help soared
Brookfield's Police and Fire departments kept busy during the storm.
Fire Chief Charlie Myers said the personnel on duty that night responded to 43 calls, 21 of which were storm-related. A typical shift responds to about nine calls.
The bulk of the calls came between 5:45 and 11:20 p.m., including one that sent firefighters out to rescue a driver and two children stranded in their vehicle near Cherokee and Honey Creek drives, he said.
The intense rain kept crews busy throughout the evening.
"It was a lot of rain really quick," Myers said.
There were no structure fires during the storm, Myers said, but the department did have to deal with downed power lines and faulty transformers.
Capt. Jim Adlam of the Brookfield Police Department said the department responded to 127 calls in the 10-hour period surrounding the storm, including directing vehicles out of flooded areas.
"There was just too much water," he said.
Several roads - including Barker Road, North Avenue and River Road - remained closed as of Tuesday because of high water, Adlam said. Mitchell Park Drive and the park itself were closed all weekend, and the Wilson Center had to cancel classes and camps earlier this week.
Adlam said the flood also damaged one Police Department vehicle, but the extent of the damage was not yet known.
Town without problems
The town did not have any problems connected to the storms, Town of Brookfield Administrator Rick Czopp said.
The Department of Public Works cleaned out catch basins and some residents were dealing with high water, but, Czopp said, he did not hear about any basement backups.
Tossing damaged items
City of Brookfield residents who experienced flooding problems can put flood-damaged items - but not construction debris like drywall - out on the curb to be picked up on their normal trash day.
Prevention tips
Tips for managing stormwater:
• Properly grade your yard away from structures.
• Repair leaking and cracked basement walls and cracks in basement floors.
• Regularly clean out gutters and downspouts.
• Check sump pump operation regularly.
• Do not install mulch or other materials in drainage ways.
Tips for preventing sewer backups:
• Do not allow stormwater drainage or sump crock overflows to go down floor drain.
• Do not bail sump crock into laundry tub, toilets or shower drains.
• Consider installing hung plumbing.
Source: Brookfield Department of Public Works
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The City's "improvements" in 2006-2007 along Calhoun road North of North
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Back to toptumanic - Jul 29, 2010 7:49 AM - Report Abuse
Ave. seem to have resulted in more flooding downstream to the Wilson Park
area. Why is it that my home, that hadn't flooded since I bought in 2001, now
has flooded in 2008, 2009, and now 2010. I don't understand how we can see
this as an improvement.