Fox River overflows in Burlington, flooding streets, basements

Fox River flooding in Burlington

After several rounds of thunderstorms dumped inches of rain, Burlington is among the communities across Wisconsin dealing with flooding.

BURLINGTON, Wis. - After several rounds of severe thunderstorms dumped inches of rain throughout the week, Burlington is among the communities across southeast Wisconsin dealing with flooding on Saturday.

What they're saying:

Sam Wilson has owned his home near Maryland and Congress, for 10 years, and his grandparents owned it for decades before that. He said this type of flooding is rare.

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"I didn't expect it to get this bad. It was really the last day of rain that really did us in," he said. "If it would have went a half hour, an hour more, we would have been cooked."

The Fox River overflowed, bursting into neighborhoods after several days of severe weather.

Fox River overflows, causing floods in Burlington

"It's just devastating. It's so sad to see the playground underground, the water taking over the bridge," he said.

Just a few miles over, there was more flooding near Brever Road – which is now home to river critters. Neighbors there said the water is not only overtaking streets, yards and baseball fields, but also basements.

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"Obviously, my car is not going anywhere for a few days," said Sharelene Zinke, a Burlington resident of more than 30 years.

On Saturday, sump pumps were pooling water from homes out onto lawns. Residents said earlier in the day, they could at least walk down the street, but the water rose so quickly that in just a matter of hours an entire street and park was flooded.

Fox River overflows, causing floods in Burlington

Zinke said the flooding triggered an almost decade-old Déjà vu, but floods in 2017 caused more damage to property.

"I just hope this is the worst that we see so far this year," she said.

Meanwhile, Wilson said this may cause his family to decide whether to rebuild or move: "I can't imagine going through this every five years or every 10 years."

PHOTO GALLERY: Flooding in Burlington

Flood level

What's next:

The National Weather Service projects the Fox River flood level in Burlington to be up to 13 feet by Sunday night. City leaders said that's above moderate flood stage, but below major flood stage. It's expected to crest at 15.8 feet in New Munster.

For now, people are asked not to drive around barricades or boat on the Fox River.

Flood assistance

What you can do:

Racine County Emergency Management has coordinated with the city and county to provide sandbags for public use at 600 Maryland Avenue. Residents are responsible for filling the bags.

Basement clean-up kits will be available from the American Red Cross for those who have experienced flood damage to their basement; to request a kit, email your name and address to: cityhall@burlington-wi.gov.

All flood debris must be left curbside for pickup by ASDA Enterprise Inc. 

Households impacted by flooded roadways may temporarily park their vehicles on the Festival Grounds off of Maryland Avenue.