Recent flooding throughout the State of Wisconsin has prompted urgent action at all levels of government. The Wisconsin members of the U.S. Senate and House, Gov. Jim Doyle, and President Bush have all been involved in recovery efforts on behalf of affected areas.
According to a statement by Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk, the Federal Emergency Management Agency will have teams in Dane County throughout the week to assess damages.
Falk also said precautionary steps were being taken in case of more rain.
The county is ready to handle the situation and ready to help our citizens,"" Falk said.
Anne Lupardus, spokesperson for U.S. Rep. Ron Kind, D-Wisconsin, said Doyle's prompt actions in the aftermath of a week of relentless flooding greatly quickened the allotment of the federal resources now available.
The counties most affected by the storms are Crawford, La Crosse, Richland, Sauk, and Vernon. They are now able to apply for federal aid following President Bush's declaration of those counties as disaster zones.
""The presidential declaration will allow many of our families and businesses to access the assistance they need to recover,"" Doyle said in a statement.
All Wisconsin members of Congress sent a letter to President Bush on Aug. 27 asking him to consider additional counties to be declared eligible for federal aid.
The seven other counties include Dane, Grant, Green, Jefferson, Kenosha, Racine and Rock.
The federal resources now available to citizens who have sustained losses are important because residents were not able to prepare much beforehand, according to Lupardus.
While some precautionary steps were taken in advance of the storms, UW-Madison professor of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences Jonathan Martin said there was no real anticipation of the amount of flooding that occurred.
""These past months are the rainiest months that we've ever had,"" said Martin, calling the amount of rain ""very unusual.""
Martin further stated that the 15.4 inches of persistent rain, which has fallen over the past month, is a 40-50% increase from the previous rainfall record. The previous record of 10 inches dates from July 1950.
Despite the recent declarations of disaster status, Martin says there is ""light at the end of the tunnel.""
""This type of rainfall occurs only once about every 100 years,"" said Martin, adding that in the months ahead the amount of rainfall will continue to decrease as fall weather takes over.
