Neighborhood faces basement collapses after severe flooding

By Emily Pofahl

Click here for updates on this story

    MUSKEGO, Wisconsin (WISN) — Severe flooding in a Muskego neighborhood caused multiple basement walls to collapse near Saroyan Road and Fennimore Lane, forcing families to evacuate their homes early Sunday morning.

Residents waded through waist-deep water to escape the rising floodwaters. Cindy Mauch, whose basement collapsed, described the experience as overwhelming.

“I can’t even explain the noise we heard,” she said.

Her son called 911 for help, but Mauch said overwhelmed first responders weren’t able to get to her right away, so the family escaped on their own.

“We had to walk through up to waist-deep water to safety, and when I came back and saw this, it’s too much,” Mauch said.

When the family returned later Sunday, they found the basement wall of their home had collapsed. The flood left behind waterlogged electronics, power tools and destroyed keepsakes.

“I’m thankful we didn’t lose lives over this, but everything else is just a loss down there,” Mauch said.

Despite having flood insurance, contractors estimate that the damage to her home’s foundation will not be covered, with repairs potentially costing nearly $50,000. Mauch said she doesn’t have that type of money saved up.

“I hope it’s covered, otherwise I don’t know what I’ll do,” she said.

Two houses down, Louie Hill had to help his mother-in-law escape her home during the flood early Sunday morning. They all escaped unharmed, but discovered the basement wall had collapsed later Sunday when they returned.

“I had no idea until the next morning that it was as bad as it was,” Hill said.

His mother-in-law’s basement is a total loss, with floodwaters also damaging the home’s foundation. The entire home is off-kilter and, like Mauch, they will also likely have to pay pay tens of thousands of dollars in repairs to the foundation themselves.

“It’s sad to see her so sad about it,” Hill said about his mother-in-law.

Mauch said this is the fourth time her basement has flooded in about 10 years. She is asking the city to increase flood risk for the area, due to the frequency of flooding and the amount of help homeowners need.

“I don’t know what the fix is, but I know I want to stay here,” Mauch said. “And I think the city needs to help because everything is pitched to my backyard.”

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.