2008 Flood in Watertown, Wisconsin
The "100-year" flood Watertown, Wisconsin experienced in June 2008 pushed water up out of the banks of the Rock River, even on dam-controlled sections that rarely rise more than an inch or two.
Please click images below to see full-size versions.
Looking across the river to the Johnsonville meat processing plant, where workers are deploying sandbags.
Families fill sandbags at the corner of Elm and Water streets.
Looking across the submerged Fannie Lewis park from Elm Street.
From the corner of Water and Elm streets it's open water for a quarter mile.
At left, four ducks rest on a floating log stuck on a bench.
The Fannie Lewis fountain looks redundant in the water.
A car decides not to turn onto "Water Street" from Elm Street. Beyond, floating debris builds up on the Fannie Lewis dock.
Houses on Water Street become their own islands as the water rises.
A man walks through flood waters on Water Street.
A city dump truck provides sand to residents at the corner of Rock and Water streets.
Flood water can be seen rising in the background.
A police car shuts down Water Street as flood waters rise past the
"end of the road" signs on Rock Street.
A gazebo marks the submerged island in Riverside Park. In the foreground, a black bench barely appears above the water.
The bridge to the submerged island in Riverside Park barely clears the flow. The sign on the bridge reads "Open to foot traffic only."
The bridge to Tivoli island is closed and barely above water.
Water starts to press the beams of the Main Street bridge downstream of Tivoli Island.
Water runs around the "Rough and Ready" dam and down a rocky emergency spillway.
Sand and plastic mounds are used to channel the water into the spillway.
The boater's take-out sign for the "Rough and Ready" dam is rendered useless.
(See this
for a normal "high water" view of this area.)
Water boils below the lower dam and up over the river walkway.
The river pushes against a temporary bridge at Milwaukee Street as workmen quickly disassemble the deck.