Storm runoff pushed water back into parts of Milwaukee this week, flooding homes and a business after a new round of storms. In Bay View, residents along South Fulton Street were throwing out water-damaged items from their basements Thursday night and picking up dehumidifiers and fans to dry out before more rain arrived.
About a mile away, the intersection of Howell and Oklahoma was underwater Wednesday night, and Reilly’s Insurance Services flooded again. Michael Arenas said the building has reached the point where flood damage feels routine. “We're kind of used to it over so many years,” he said, adding that floodwaters pushed out some window seals and even forced open sealed-up windows. “We even had some of these windows sealed up over here, and the flood actually pushed these out pretty good, so we're gonna have to get these [...] yeah, they pushed them out pretty good, and put all these leaves and stuff down here from the window wells,” Arenas said.
The latest damage hit neighborhoods and businesses still recovering from the historic August rains, which left some basements badly flooded and set the stage for another round of worry as residents said more rain was expected. The flooding has become almost an annual issue for the building at Howell and Oklahoma, turning a weather event into a recurring repair bill.
Allison Gipp said her basement took on sewage through a floor drain and reached about three inches this time, after about three feet of water in August. She said she had to throw out “Boxes, a TV, luggage, you know, wrapping paper and toilet paper,” and is holding off on fully cleaning the basement in case the water comes back. “They're saying, 'Well, our biggest priority is not to have sewage in people's basements.' Well... This is what keeps happening,” Gipp said. “Hopefully it doesn't happen again,” she added. “Hopefully, if it does, it's not worse.”
The cleanup now is part damage control and part gamble. In Milwaukee, where flooding has returned to homes and businesses after Thursday storms, residents are preparing for the next downpour before they have finished dealing with the last one.