% >> FLOOD WARNINGS IN WISCONSIN,
% ESPECIALLY ALONG THE MISSISSIPPI%
RIVER HAVE SPHRAFO FORECASTERS T
% RECORD HIGH WATER.
% IT IS EXPECTED TO CREST BY 15
% FEET MONDAY EVENING.
% FLOOD STAGE IS 12 FEET.
% THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
% DESCRIBES THIS AS MAJOR FLOODING
% LIKELY TO INVOLVE EXTENSIVE
% INUNDATION OF ROADS, STRUCTURES,
% AND/OR SIGNIFICANT EVACUATION
% EFFORTS.%WITH THIS FLOODING F
ORECAST, THE
% CITY FIRE DEPARTMENT IS ASKING
% RESIDENTS TO PREPARE ALONG THE
% MISSISSIPPI, LACROSSE AND BLACK
% RIVERS.%STAND IS BEING GIVEN
OUT FOR
% FILLING SANDBAGS AND RESIDENTS
% ARE TOLD TO MAKE AN EMERGENCY
% PLAN.
% GOVERNOR'S STATE OF EMERGENCY
% ACTIVATES THE WISCONSIN NATIONAL
% GUARD WITH THE STATE PATROL
% RECOMMENDING AGAINST TRAVEL IN
% HIGH WATER AREAS.
% HERE TO DETAIL THE THREAT, MIKE
% WELVAERT WHO JOINS US.
% MIKE, THANK YOU FOR BEING WITH%
US.
% >> IT'S MY PLEASURE.
% >> SO WHAT'S THE LATEST ALONG
% THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER FOR
% WISCONSIN CITIES AND TOWNS RIGHT
% NOW?
% >> ALL THE SNOW THAT WE HAD THIS
% WINTER RAPIDLY MELTED WHEN WE
% HAD THOSE WARM TEMPERATURES A
% WEEK OR SO AGO AND THEN WE'VE
% ADDED RAIN ON TOP OF THAT, SO
% ALL THAT WATER IS WORKING ITS
% WAY THROUGH THE TRIBUTE STORIESD
% DOWN INTO THE MAIN STEM OF THE
% MISSISSIPPI RIVER AND THAT WATER
% IS DOWNSTREAM.
% IT IS CLOSE TO CRESTING IN THE
% TWIN CITIES AND THEY'LL BE
% SENDING THAT DOWNSTREAM ALONG
% THE MINNESOTA-WISCONSIN BORDER
% BY THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK.
% >> AND THAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENING
% OVER THE WEEKEND IS THAT THE
% RIVER WILL BE RISING FARTHER
% TOWARD THAT CREST IN THE
% LACROSSE AND OTHER TOWNS AND
% CITIES ALONG THE WISCONSIN
% BORDER THERE?
% >> YES, THAT'S CORRECT.
% >> WHAT WILL THE FLOODING LOOK
% LIKE FOR HOMEOWNERS AND
% TRAVELERS AND BUSINESS OWNERS?
% >> WELL, THIS FLOODING THAT
% WE'RE SOMETHING THIS YEAR, THE
% MISSISSIPPI DOES EXPERIENCE
% FLOODING MANY YEARS, BUT THIS
% YEAR IN TICKER, WATER LEVELS ARE
% QUITE A BIT HIGHER THAN WE
% USUALLY SEE.
% IT'S LOOKING RIGHT NOW LIKE
% WE'RE GOING TO SEE CRESTS
% SOMEWHERE NEAR WHAT HAPPENED IN
% 2001, MAYBE 1969.
% SOME OF THE REALLY BIG FLOOD
% YEARS THAT WE HAD.
% SO IT'S LOOKING LIKE A TOP TWO
% OR TOP THREE CREST ALONG THE
% MISSISSIPPI RIVER THROUGHOUT
% THAT AREA.
% >> HOW DANGEROUS IS THIS, THEN?
% >> IT'S PRETTY DANGEROUS.
% IF YOU'RE GOING TO BE NEAR THE
% RIVER OR YOU HAVE ANY KIND OF
% ACTIVITIES THAT TAKE YOU NEAR
% THE RIVER, BE SURE TO HEED AND
% FOLLOW ANY DIRECTIONS REGARDING
% CLOSURES, WHAT LOCAL OFFICIALS
% MIGHT BE SAYING AS FAR AS
% WHETHER YOU SHOULD GO INTO THOSE
% AREAS OR NOT.
% IT MAY NOT LOOK LIKE A BIG DEAL,
% BUT WITH THAT MUCH WATER REALLY
% IS MOVING AT A PRETTY GOOD CLIP,
% IT CAN SWEEP YOU OFF YOUR FEET
% AND YOU CAN BE DOWNSTREAM BEFORE
% YOU KNOW IT.
% YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT KIND OF
% DEBRIS IS IN THE WATER.
% WE'RE SEEING A LOT OF REPORTS OF
% LARGE TREES AND THINGS LIKE THAT
% COMING DOWNRIVER.
% IN ADDITION TO, UNFORTUNATELY,
% PEOPLE'S DOCKS AND OTHER TYPES
% OF DEBRIS THAT HAVE FLOATED AWAY
% FROM THEM, SO THERE'S A LOT OF
% DEBRIS IN THE WATER, AND IF YOU
% WERE TO GET CAUGHT IN ANY OF
% THAT, IT COULD BE VERY
% DANGEROUS.
% >> THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE,
% AS WE MENTIONED, SUGGESTED THAT
% THIS FLOODING INVOLVES EXTENSIVE
% INUNDATION OF ROADS AND
% SIGNIFICANT EVACUATION EFFORTS.
% IS THAT SOMETHING THAT WAS SEEN
% WITH THESE KINDS OF RIVER LEVELS
% PREVIOUSLY?%>> YEAH.
% IN THE PAST WHERE WE'VE HAD
% THESSALONTHESE HIGHER LEVEL FLOE
% ARE RIVERS UP AND DOWN THE
% MISSISSIPPI AND ON BOTH SIDES,
% THE FOLKS WHO LIVE IN THAT AREA
% KNOW THAT THEY FLOOD FIRST, BUT
% NOW IS THE TIME TO TAKE THOSE
% PRECAUTIONS.%WITH WATER LEVEL
S THIS HIGH, WE
% HAVEN'T SEEN THIS IN OVER 20
% YEARS FOR MANY OF THESE
% LOCATIONS, AT LEAST, SO TAKE
% THOSE PREPARATIONS AND GET THOSE
% DONE SOONER RATHER THAN LATER.
% IF YOU'RE IN AN AREA THAT
% HAPPENS TO GET STRANDED, SO
% YOU'LL BE LOCKED OUT, YOU SHOULD
% PROBABLY HAVE A PLAN TO KNOW
% WHAT YOU CAN DO IF YOU ARE
% ISOLATED DUE TO HIGH WATER.
% CONSIDER EVACUATIONS IF THEY'RE
% ORDERED BY YOUR LOCAL OFFICIALS.
% >> SO THE ENTIRE STATE OF
% WISCONSIN IS UNDER A STATE OF
% EMERGENCY FOR FLOODING.
% WHAT OTHER AREAS ARE OF GREATEST
% CONCERN?% >> RIGHT NOW, THE
WORST OF THE
% FLOODING IS REALLY EXPECTED
% ALONG THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER
% ITSELF.
% HOWEVER, WITH ALL THE RECENT
% SNOW AND RAIN EVENTS THAT WE'VE
% HAD, A LOT OF THE RIVERS ARE
% RUNNING QUITE HIGH AT THE
% MOMENT.% I KNOW THE WISCONS
IN RIVER HAS
% BEEN QUITE HIGH FOR SEVERAL
% WEEKS NOW.
% I KNOW THERE'S BEEN SOME
% SIGNIFICANT FLOODING AROUND THE
% PORTAGE AREA, WORKING ITS WAY
% DOWN THE WISCONSIN RIVER.
% SO ANYWHERE WE SEE ANY
% ADDITIONAL PRECIPITATION OVER
% THE COMING WEEKS, WE NEED TO PAY
% ATTENTION.%GROUND IS PRETTY W
ET.
% ANY RAINFALL IS GOING TO ADD TO
% FLOOD RISK.
% >> WHAT KIND OF ADDITIONAL
% PRECIPITATION MIGHT YOU BE
% FORECASTING?
% >> RIGHT NOW, THANKFULLY, IT'S
% LOOKING LIKE WE'RE GOING TO SEE
% MAYBE SOME LIGHT PRECIPITATION
% OVER THE NEXT -- WELL, TODAY AND
% INTO TOMORROW, PERHAPS, BEFORE
% THIS STORM SYSTEM WE'RE
% CURRENTLY LOOKING AT PULLS OUT
% OF THE AREA, BUT BEYOND THAT,
% WE'RE NOT LOOKING AT ANYTHING
% REAL SIGNIFICANT FOR AT LEAST
% SEVEN OR EIGHT DAYS, SO THAT'S
% GOOD, WE NEED THE TIME TO ALLOW
% THIS WATER TO WORK ITS WAY
% THROUGH THE SYSTEM.
% >> I READ ON THE NATIONAL
% WEATHER SERVICE WEBSITE THAT WE
% SHOULD EXPECT FLOODING TO LAST
% SEVERAL WEEKS, AND SO RIVERS
% DON'T CREST AND THEN RECEDE
% QUICKLY.
% HOW DOES THAT WORK ITSELF OUT?
% >> THE SMALLER TRIBUTARY RIVERS,
% THEY ONLY HAVE A SMALLER
% GEOGRAPHIC AREA THAT CONTRIBUTES
% TO WATER GOING UP AND DOWN IN A
% RIVER, SO SMALLER TRIBUTARIES,
% THEY GO UP AND THEY GO DOWN
% ANYWHERE FROM SIX, EIGHT HOURS
% TO MAYBE PERHAPS A DAY OR TWO,
% BUT THE LARGER RIVERS, LIKE THE
% MISSISSIPPI OR THE WORK, THEY'RE
% DRAINING A VERY, VERY LARGE
% GEOGRAPHIC AREA.
% ALL THE WATER FROM ALL OF THOSE
% SMALLER TRIBUTARIES, AS IT MOVES
% ITS WAY INTO THE LARGE RIVER,
% ALL THAT WATER HAS TO FROG AND
% WORK ITS WAY DOWNSTREAM SO IT
% TAKES A WHILE FOR THAT, AND SO
% THAT'S WHY WE'RE LOOKING AT THE
% MISSISSIPPI TO STAY ACTIVE.
% IT'S DRAINING FROM NORTHERN AND
% WESTERN MINNESOTA SO THERE'S A
% LOT OF WATER COMING, AND
% ACTUALLY, NORTHERN WISCONSIN AS
% WELL COMING DOWN THE SAINT
% CROIX.%ALL OF THOSE ARE BIG
% CONTRIBUTORS THIS YEAR.
% >> MIKE WELVAERT FROM THE