Historic flooding; Milwaukee Riverkeeper expects cleanup to take months

Flood cleanup expected to take months

Entire trees, trash and erosion. It is just part of the damage left behind from historic flooding. FOX6 News took a closer look at the cleanup happening on the rivers.

MILWAUKEE - Entire trees, trash and erosion. It is just part of the damage left behind from historic flooding earlier this month. FOX6 News took a closer look at the cleanup happening on the rivers – and learned why it will take months to complete.

Flood cleanup will take months

What we know:

Where floodwaters at one point reached over ten feet, you will now find piles of trash. The rivers in southeast Wisconsin are revealed the damage from recent historic floods. 

Debris seen along Milwaukee waterways

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Along the Milwaukee River, debris is piling up with nowhere to go. In the Menomonee River, there is even more junk along the banks. 

What they're saying:

"I think it is going to take us a very long time," said Cheryl Nenn of Milwaukee Riverkeeper. "As the water levels are receding and we’re getting out in the river, we’re seeing a lot of failed pipes, storm water pipes, sewage pipes, things like that."

Debris seen along Milwaukee waterways

Nenn is a Milwaukee Riverkeeper. She said teams have started to look at damage along the Menomonee, Kinnickinnic and Milwaukee rivers.

"Seeing all this trash is really sad. And also there is significant streambank erosion because water levels dropped very quickly," Nenn said. "In some cases, I think there is going to be a lot more trash than normal."

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Nenn told FOX6 News that communities are still focused on homeowners. But once volunteers are ready to help clean the waterways, there is another challenge. 

Debris seen along Milwaukee waterways

"A lot of pretty severe stream bank erosion that is threatening pedestrian bridges and a lot of our county parks, threatening trail systems," Nenn said. "The slopes don’t really look stable, so in some places I think it is going to be hard to use volunteers to clean up."

Cleanup events planned

What you can do:

Milwaukee Riverkeeper is hosting specialized flood damage cleanup events this fall. Learn more about those events and when they will happen.