State of Emergency Issued Following Water Rescues, Evacuations in Wisconsin as Flash Flooding Continues

The line of severe thunderstorms raced across southern Wisconsin into Tuesday evening, enhancing already high water in southeastern Wisconsin. 

On Tuesday, an 11-year-old boy was rescued after he disappeared in a drainage ditch in Calumet County, WBAY reports. The boy was reportedly playing with friends in the ditch when he disappeared under rising waters. He was found unharmed about 30 feet away from the site.

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker added six counties in southern Wisconsin to a state of emergency declared for Dane County last week. The six counties added – Fond du Lac, Juneau, La Crosse, Monroe, Vernon, and Washington – have been impacted by flash flooding and severe weather since Monday.

Along the western border of Wisconsin, the hardest hit were parts of Houston County, Minnesota, stretching into southern La Crosse, Vernon and Monroe counties in western Wisconsin, where reports of 4 to 10 inches of rain were received, prompting a rare flash flood emergency from the National Weather Service early Tuesday morning.

Severe flooding prompted evacuations in Coon Valley, Wisconsin, about 13 miles southeast of La Crosse, early Tuesday.

The eastbound and westbound lanes of I-90/94 in Juneau County were closed Tuesday afternoon, NBC15 in Madison, Wisconsin reports. The closure of westbound Interstate 90 continues southward to near Portage, a distance of more than 30 miles. In Vernon County, nearly 40 roads were closed. 

Two campers along the Kickapoo River near Rockton were rescued from water up to their necks.

Upstream, the town of Ontario was said to be "under water," with numerous roads impassable early Tuesday, according to Vernon County emergency management. At least one road was reportedly washed out in the town.

The Kickapoo River in Ontario was expected to crest at a record 8 feet above flood stage early Tuesday, topping the June 2008 crest, but the river gauge had stopped reporting.

Mudslides were also reported in northern Vernon County Monday night. A cooperative observer near Westby reported 9.98 inches of rain through 7 a.m. CDT Tuesday, most of which fell in less than 12 hours.

In Monroe County, at least one resident was evacuated from a home in Melvina, and floodwaters were reported to be up to homes in Oil City.

Two roads were reportedly washed out near the towns of Kendall and Portland.

Chest-high water prompted evacuations from the Brookview Mobile Home Park southeast of La Crosse.

Soaking rain also pounded Ozaukee and Washington County once again Tuesday morning, just 24 hours after over 7 inches of rain triggered flash flooding, including the flooding of a condominium complex in downtown Port Washington and parts of downtown Saukville.

Green Bay also got hard hit going into Tuesday evening as heavy rain and strong winds pushed across the state. Urban flooding led to roadways being covered by 4-6 inches of water, enough to cause difficulty in walking. 

Several cars were stranded by rising water in Neenah, Wisconsin, located near Appleton.

To add to the rainfall threat, at least one tornado touched down in southeast Wisconsin near Fond du Lac. Debris was reported near the town of Oakfield. 

Wind gusts as high as 75 mph also caused tree and car damage near Fox Lake and Brandon, Wisconsin.

Severe winds snapped trees at their base as the squall line moved into Lake Michigan. 

Around 63,000 customers in Michigan and 37,000 customers in south-central Wisconsin lost power Tuesday evening, according to poweroutage.us, mainly in a strip from La Crosse to Sheboygan, and across Lake Michigan into west-central lower Michigan. 

Previous Flood Reports

Several inches of standing water was observed in parts of Oshkosh late Monday night.

Homes were evacuated along State Highway 35 and County Road K near Goose Island, also just south of La Crosse, after midnight Tuesday.

Elsewhere, flooding closed a stretch of State Highway 82 in Juneau County between Elroy and Mauston.

Parts of several roads were flooded in northern Sauk County, and up to 3 feet of water was seen in several streets in Fond du Lac, about 55 miles northwest of Milwaukee.

Relief came briefly early Tuesday in Dane County, plagued by heavy flooding from last Monday's deluge of over 11 inches of rain in some places. Only about a quarter-inch of rain fell at Dane County Regional Airport on Madison's north side Monday night.

The city opened several more streets Monday that had been flooded due to water releases from Tenney Dam, a small dam draining rain-swollen Lake Mendota.

After hitting a record level, Lake Monona on the city's southeast side and other area lake levels had appeared to stabilize, Madison.com reported.

However, the city released an updated map Monday outlining areas that may see additional flooding from upcoming rainfall around Lake Monona.