I survived the Great Milwaukee Flood
There was a flood. More than 14 inches of rain in some places. A few days later it is still wet out and certain areas have an eye-watering smell, even outside. I drank some of the water and lived to tell about it. I saw the police using those yellow rafts they use for cadavers on city streets. My workplace stayed open and had us travel by high street and viaduct to park in the top levels of the structure. I haven’t checked for a death toll, but there is no way everyone made it out of the flood alive. Now we have a second flood: the flood of misinformation.
By Adam Faraca, who has been in a few bad storms before
8/12/20253 min read
There was a flood in the mid 90s. I know this because my dad was still alive and my uncle’s boat, The Chairman’s Choice as he christened it, got loose on the lake. I was still dragging my feet through college in 2010 when Milwaukee had the last flood. I had a flight grounded on Florida once due to a hurricane being extremely far away but just close enough. On my way to my wedding, I had to stop in Isla Morada in part because of the heavy and sudden rain. The most intense rain of my life, and just another day in the Sunshine State. These, and the recent flood, are the worst rain storms I have ever been associated with.
In a sign of our times, I have not seen or heard anyone say ‘Hashtag Milwaukee Strong.’ I’ve not seen anyone selling tee shirts or flood survival kits in abandoned lots. Nobody offered me a sketchy boat ride. I continue to see plenty of out of state vehicles with… ahem… law enforcement officers SUV-ing around checking everybody out. But I haven’t seen anyone from FEMA or any Red Cross aid worker, etc. The flood made international news, as flood footage is cheap ratings and clicks for the modern media.
Videos of “Milwaukee” have begun to appear on social media. The subway system that totally exists in our small city is flooded. The steep roads that look suspiciously like the Bay Area have tons of water and landslides. Roads with engineering features and architecture not found in the United States have turned into sink holes. Many of the comments on questionable at best Facebook links point out that the license plates are not American. Nevermind thoughts and prayers, click God damn you! Click that link that if you hover over it says facebook dot virus dot scam or whatever. Watch the poorly edited videos of Eastern Europeans and Central Americans running from floods in ‘Milwaukee.’ And donate. Text to donate. Milwaukee has experienced a biblical flood and you’d better donate in crypto currency because that is how we buy beer and cheese here. Also the bad Photo Shop and AI images are totally legit.
There was a real sink hole in my hometown. I’ve driven on the road before, not far from a doctor’s office I’ve been to. There are plenty of people whose houses are not livable. Hundreds if not thousands of cars will be totaled. The high water mark on the retaining walls was near their top on the Milwaukee River. There is still dirt and debris everywhere. Last I checked there were still areas where generators were pumping dirty water away. The flood was real, and the need for the community to come together to rebuild and move past it is real. The quickness and effectiveness of the response of scammers compared to the government is also real.
Life’s already moved on. My employer never closed. I’ve ordered take out. Most businesses have opened back up. The message is clear. Deal with it. When the rivers are a hair below completely flooding over retaining walls that are tens of feet high and cars are almost completely submerged, we’re reporting live. A couple of days later when everything is wet and gross, every man for himself. Part of me wishes that Milwaukee actually had the severe crime syndicate that pearl clutching suburbanites have been conditioned to believe exists. Historically, when there has been a time of great need, everyone from the Yakuza to Al Capone to El Chapo has pitched in to help first responders and emergency services, or provide meals to disaster victims. Keyser Sose and the KIA Boyz haven’t done so. I guess we have enough crime for talk radio to scare people, but not enough for our criminal warlords who totally exist to lend a helping hand. My mistake.
The worst part is I don’t even know how to help. If this were Hurricane Katrina or something, there would be a number to text, a central location to volunteer at, a place where basic supplies and necessities were being collected and distributed, etc. It is possible that those things exist. I hope they do. I’ve yet to see a legit text, social media post, local news mention, etc. for how to do this. The scammers are already scamming, but the fourth public and public relations for whichever charity is leading the charge have been woefully inadequate. Maybe FEMA will help, too.
Keep your thoughts and prayers. Keep your money, for now. Hopefully there will be a better relief effort for our urban flooding disaster. If you do donate to the Red Cross or whomever is going to help the affected people, thank you. But please make sure you are donating to the actual organizations and not to the scammers, because they have a head start.