Flooding in Buffalo County
August 11 — Update from Pastor Joel Bacon, St. John Lutheran, Alma
Due to flooding on Wednesday evening, August 10, half of all Buffalo County roads were impassable but by Saturday everything was open—this was a lot of work. The township and county workers did an incredible job of restoring mobility.
Many of the rural dwellings in our area have their own bridges as part of their driveway structures. Because of moving earth and debris many of those bridges failed and the approaches to them were washed away while the bridge remained intact. Insurance does not cover those repairs.
Much of the damage was caused by moving earth and debris which most homeowner’s insurance policies do not cover. Most of this was from failures of water control dams. That said, every dam that failed was ‘homemade.’ Not a single county engineered and contracted dam failed.
Emergency services, the banks and churches are figuring out how to work together and maintain HIPPA and other privacy matters.
No one here can remember this much damage happening this suddenly—we got 8 to 12 inches of rain in less than 6 hours.
People have suffered gut wrenching losses of photos and family heirlooms. This calls for a compassionate response, not a voyeuristic reaction. There are a number of people driving by to take pictures of sufferers who have generations of memories and heirlooms spread out over the yard and being tossed into dumpsters. God calls us to compassionately respond and serve, not to be passively entertained.
BISHOP ARENDS INVITES SYNOD CONGREGATIONS TO JOIN IN A MONTH OF SPECIAL OFFERINGS for the Emergency Fund at St. John Lutheran in Alma, so aid can be given to those in need. Please also include them in your prayers. St. John has a disaster relief fund that has been used for mercy trips in the past and can be used for donations:
St. John Lutheran, PO Box 128, Alma WI 54610.
Checks may also be sent to synod office at 2301 South Avenue, La Crosse, WI 54601, with “Buffalo County Flood” in the memo line.
