Update to flooding in Burlington

No curfew is in place for Burlington Saturday night.

The City of Burlington is still recovering after a massive flood that affected most of the municipality and surrounding communities. The Fox River crested the morning of Thursday, July 13 at its highest historical level of 16.5 feet and began to slowly recede.

Echo Lake Dam

Echo Lake Dam was opened approximately 1.5 inches at 11:00 AM Friday, July 14. This process will be repeated – a slow, incremental opening process, inches at a time – for the next two weeks. The Department of Natural Resources Dam Inspection crew will be conducting hourly checks to monitor this process and the condition of the dam. 

This action was ordered to relieve pressure on the structural concrete and the earth embankments. The concrete is holding, however the earth embankment on both sides of the river is eroding. The opening of the dam will drain Echo Lake completely within the next two weeks. The slow, incremental opening of the dam should keep the fluctuation of the water levels down river to a minimum. 

The draining of the lake will allow for a complete inspection of the dam, which will determine the safety of the dam and future improvements to the waterway. We know this is of great interest to the community. We will have more information for you as soon as possible.

WeEnergies

Power has been restored to the city as of Saturday, July 15 with no reported outages.

Over 4400 residents of the City of Burlington and Waterford area were without power and telephone service for a few days. We Energies announced the Waterford area power was restored by noon July 13. The company worked diligently to restore power to the Burlington area, and completed part of the city on Friday, July 14 with the remaining Saturday, July 15.

National Guard

Over 60 members of the National Guard were deployed in the City of Burlington and assisted in emergency efforts, including monitoring traffic at the several streets and bridges that remain closed. The Guard and Racine County Human Services staff conducted health and well visits to the elderly, homebound, and vulnerable adults in the Burlington area. On July 15, the National Guard was released of duty in the city to enable them to assist other communities in need.

Travel

Most roads and all bridges, except the Jefferson Street bridge, are open. As the flood water continues to recede, access to all roads will improve.

Disaster Recovery Services Available to Flood Victims

Well Water Safety

  • Private well owners with wells located in a flooded area should not consume the water without boiling it first.
  • After the flood waters have receded, wells should be chlorinated and then tested for contamination.
  • Whenever you notice a change in water quality, or anytime there's been flooding near your well, have your well tested for bacteria contamination. Until the test results are known, follow these procedures to ensure safe drinking water:
    • Drink bottled water or water from a known, safe source.
    • If necessary, you can make water safe to drink by boiling it for five minutes.
  • When in doubt, if the water is CLOUDY, ODOROUS, OR COLORED - DO NOT DRINK THE WATER!
  • Further information can be found on the CRCHD site

American Red Cross Emergency Shelter

The American Red Cross is opening a shelter in the Burlington High School gymnasium, 400 McCanna Parkway, for those who need a place to stay. They will be providing meals for those who stay. Residents who have been affected by the flooding can also come for recovery resources and information.

City Hall Closed

Please be advised, due to power loss and electronic infrastructure damage, City Hall will be closed until some of the infrastructure can be restored. Departments within City Hall include Administration, Finance, City Clerk, Building Inspection, Municipal Court and County services (County Clerk, Register of Deeds and County Treasurer). Please note, we do not have email, phones, voice mail, internet or stored electronic documents and cannot respond to requests. We apologize for this inconvenience during this critical time and are working to reopen as quickly as possible.

If you need assistance for County services please call:

  • County Clerk: 262.636.3121 (if you have a marriage license waiting for you at City Hall we will contact you)
  • County Treasurer: 262.636.3239 (we cannot take July tax payments until we reopen)
  • Register of Deeds: 262-636-3208

If you need assistance for City Services:

  • Non-emergency Police Department: 758-1875 or 763-9558
  • Building Inspection: The Building Inspector and contracted team are currently working with the Emergency Management Team to handle emergency inspections for flood victims. We will begin regular inspections as soon as possible.
  • Municipal Court: If you had a court hearing this week, the Municipal Court Clerk will send you a new court date as soon as we are back online.
  • All other services (City Hall and Public Works): We are continually working to get a phone line reinstalled for you to contact. Thank you for your patience!
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