The heavy rains the past few days have prompted Wisconsin Public Service to issue a warning about recreating near Wisconsin River dams.
WPS spokesperson Leah Van Zile says The Wisconsin River will collect the runoff from much of northern and central Wisconsin, which will increase river flows as it moves southward. She says this will increase water flow around the dams...
"....the ground is already saturated so there's a lot of runoff. Water levels are high, so if you're in and around(dams), we want to make sure everyone is very alert to the situation and use extreme caution...."
Van Zile says there are stronger currents that happen above and below the dam...
"....with the additional water levels we're seeing because of the rain, those currents and undercurrents can be very strong and can change rapidly. So if you're doing any kind of recreation activities around the dam, just use extreme caution...."
Officials say WPS and Wisconsin River Power Company are working with other dam operators on the Wisconsin River and the National Weather Service to safely manage dams as river flows increase. On the southern end of the Wisconsin River, Wednesday night rain totals were in the six-plus inches range.
The WPS website has more information.
