A north side Milwaukee neighborhood is still reeling days after heavy rains pounded the area, leaving homes damaged and families displaced.
Along 61st and Lawn Avenue, the curb has become a junkyard for lives disrupted. Mattresses, baby toys, appliances, and cars line the streets – memories soaked and dragged to the curb as neighbors plead for help.
Every home in the area was impacted when Lincoln Creek, which snakes through the neighborhood, overflowed during Sunday’s downpour. Water flooded basements, destroyed homes, and in some cases, families lost everything.
“We walk in the door and it’s just water everywhere,” Carla Xiong said. “Everything was flooded to the top of our stairs — so bad.”
The Xiong family, who are Hmong, lost nearly everything but managed to save their traditional clothes, rich in color and culture.
“Some are from the 1990s, some are from new generations. Whatever we lost, we lost, but we’re able to keep our memories still, so that’s important, and I’m glad we were able to save it,” Xiong said.
Others weren’t so optimistic. A veteran, too distraught to go on camera, shared his heartbreak over losing his wife just last month. Now, floodwaters have destroyed his home.
“This has never happened. Never ever happened,” said Melissa Bennett, a single mother whose basement was flooded to the ceiling…