Sewers Meet Challenge of Continual Rainstorm

Whitefish Bay officials say the sewers are still holding up, despite these early April showers.

Despite three to four inches of rainfall since Tuesday, Assistant Village Engineer Aaron Jahncke said that – as of 12 p.m. Thursday – there have been no sewer backups caused by capacity issues .

"We've received a pretty good amount of rain," Jahncke said. "Fortunately it’s been happening in waves, so the sewers have been able to handle it."

The village has received three or four reports of sewer backups caused by private lateral deficiencies, however. These lateral deficiencies, often caused by root intrusions, result in large amounts of rain water seeping into foundation drains and causing basement backups.

Although some streets have seen small ponds, Whitefish Bay has so far been immune to the types of flooding and road closures experienced in other areas, like the Fox River in Kenosha County and the Milwaukee River in Saukville.