At a Glance Severe flooding hit several southern Wisconsin towns Monday night and Tuesday morning. Crews have recovered the body of a man who was swept away by floodwaters in western Madison. A state of emergency was declared Tuesday morning in Dane County in response to the floods. Hours of heavy rainfall triggered flooding in parts of southern Wisconsin Tuesday morning, triggering evacuations after nearly a foot of rain fell. Dane County officials said they've recovered the body of a man who was swept away by floodwaters Monday night, Madison.com reported. The body was found in a retention pond during an exhaustive search that lasted several hours Tuesday morning. The Madison Fire Department said witnesses saw the victim, whose identity has not been released, get pulled under his vehicle by the strong current near Chapel Hill and Regis roads in western Madison at about 9 p.m. local time; two others inside the vehicle were able to make it to safety, the Associated Press reported. "The occupants of the stalled vehicle exited in swift water and one person has been reported missing," said a news release. "Fire department personnel are on the scene continuing to search for the missing individual." Advertisement Dane County Executive Joe Parisi declared a state of emergency, which will free up state and federal assistance in the flood's aftermath. More than 10 inches of rain was reported in areas west of Madison by Tuesday morning. (MORE: Where Severe Storms Could Strike This Week) According to WMTV, residents were ordered to evacuate in the town of Black Earth, west of Madison, early Tuesday morning. Additional evacuations were reported in Cross Plains and Mazomanie, Madison.com reported. A media advisory said all roads in and around Cross Plains were closed Tuesday morning, because of flooding, and travelers were asked to stay away from the town. Authorities said first responders performed dozens of water rescues overnight as people got stuck in floodwaters on submerged roads in several towns, Madison.com reported.<doc-sep>An epic rainfall swept one man to his death, washed out bridges, swamped homes, cars and businesses, and marooned dozens of shoppers overnight at a Middleton discount store Monday. The flash floods took many by surprise, forcing emergency responders and ordinary citizens into extraordinary efforts to rescue those caught in the rushing water. “In my mind, last night was nothing but heroes working every single moment to save lives,” Dane County Sheriff Dave Mahoney said Tuesday. The National Weather Service estimated 14.33 inches of rain fell in Cross Plains which, if confirmed, would be the heaviest rainfall for a 24-hour period ever recorded in Wisconsin. The official record for rainfall over 24 hours was 11.72 inches near Mellen in June 1946. Madison officially recorded 3.92 inches of rain at the Dane County Regional Airport on the North Side, a record for Aug. 20, though rain continued to fall after midnight. The deluge caused widespread flooding in Mazomanie and Cross Plains, washed out a highway bridge in Black Earth as well as a nearby railroad bridge and closed roads throughout southern Wisconsin. One man was killed when his car stalled in high water at about 9 p.m. Monday near Chapel Hill Road and Regis Road on Madison’s West Side. Two of the vehicle’s occupants were pulled to safety, but the third, a man in his 70s, was swept away, Madison police spokesman Joel DeSpain said. His body was found Tuesday morning. “He had gotten out of the car, but the current was very powerful,” DeSpain said. “Despite heroic efforts, they were unable to keep him from being sucked under the car.” Countless others were rescued by law enforcement officers, firefighters and individuals throughout the night, Mahoney said. That included one man who was pulled from his car by two sheriff’s deputies on Highway PD near the intersection with Timber Road in the town of Springdale. After the man called 911 to say he was close to drowning in his car, deputies Rob Schiro and Nathan Katzemeyer tried but failed to reach him with ropes, life preservers and other equipment, Mahoney said. The deputies then commandeered a boat from a nearby house, drove it to the car and pulled the man out of a back window. “He literally had just enough air for his nose and mouth before he was pulled out,” Mahoney said. Minutes later, just down the road, Katzemeyer and a resident of a nearby home rescued a woman who was standing through the sunroof of her car, which was submerged in about 10 feet of water, Dane County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Elise Schaffer said. Evacuations, lightning Western Dane County endured the heaviest rainfall. Black Earth Creek reached a record high level Monday night and continued to rise Tuesday, washing out a bridge on Highway 14 near Highway 78. Firefighters and EMS workers from several volunteer groups worked through the night to evacuate hundreds of residents from homes and apartment buildings in Cross Plains, Black Earth and Mazomanie. Others were fighting a blaze caused by a lightning strike that destroyed a residence on Hillpoint Road, said Assistant Chief Steve Buss of the Cross Plains-Town of Berry Fire Department. “We’re lucky there was no loss of life,” Buss said. One firefighter was injured when he was shocked by a nearby lightning strike in Cross Plains, Buss said. Buss said he was expected to be released from a hospital Tuesday. Sven Krause, owner of the Midwest Microcar Museum Vintage Cycle Room in Mazomanie said flooding caused an estimated $300,000 to $400,000 in damage to the museum’s contents. The microcar museum opened in 2015 in a historic, brick building to display Krause’s father’s microcars — oddly shaped and tiny automobiles that were popular in post-World War II Europe. In Black Earth, Shoe Box owner Steve Schmitt said about half his inventory of 875,000 pairs of shoes were damaged by water that reached his store and two nearby buildings. Schmitt said Tuesday was the first non-scheduled store closing in 51 years. “We’ll be open (Wednesday),” he said. “It’ll be a mess but we’ll be fine. We’re just happy nobody was hurt.” State of emergency Gov. Scott Walker declared a state of emergency for Dane County Tuesday evening and said he planned to tour the area on Wednesday. “The state is ready to assist in the recovery efforts taking place throughout Dane County after yesterday’s storms,” Walker said. “I have no doubt the resiliency of Wisconsin communities will be on display during this response.” Dane County Executive Joe Parisi, who also declared a local state of emergency, urged private property owners with damage to call 211 and encouraged businesses that have experienced flood damage to contact their local unit of government to document losses in preparation for disaster assistance. The American Red Cross and the Salvation Army opened shelters at Glacier Creek Middle School in Cross Plains, Mazomanie Elementary School and West High School in Madison. Dozens of roads, including sections of Highway 14, remained closed Tuesday, and abandoned vehicles littered underpasses and intersections in low-lying areas across the west metro area. Authorities said it could be days before some roads reopen. The heavy rain tipped over fuel tanks at Morey Airport in Middleton. One of the tanks contained 1,000 gallons of jet fuel; the other held 500 gallons of gasoline. Officials said the gas tank was leaking, but the gasoline was being collected in a containment berm. Storm sewers overwhelmed The heaviest flooding in Madison occurred on the West and Southwest sides. Areas most affected included McKenna Boulevard near Elver Park, Mineral Point Road in the Gammon Road area, Mineral Point Road at Junction Road, Odana Road in the Grand Canyon Drive area, and Pleasant View Road around Valley View Road. Some streets were open but still showed signs of flooding. Debris was visible on the underside of vehicles parked along Midvale Boulevard. On University Avenue, Jeff Jensen was cleaning out the bays of his garage, Car Care Clinic, which took on about 6 inches of water Monday night. Jensen said his parking lot regularly floods when the storm sewers can’t keep up with heavy rains and passing vehicles slosh through. “The waves are what do all the damage,” he said. “It’s been up to the door but not this bad,” he said as he hosed debris from his parking lot. The Spirit Mart gas station at 2801 University Ave. was still without power at 8:35 a.m., during what manager Rama Sapkota said is normally one of the busiest times for the store, which had about 2 inches of water on the floors. “So many people ask me, ‘What is going on?’” Sapkota said. “No power.” Stranded in Middleton Large swaths of Middleton were still under water Tuesday. Dozens of shoppers and employees had to spend the night at the Costco store on Deming Way after floodwaters left the building an island surrounded by a lake of swamped cars, according to an employee who declined to be identified. Sameer Kamat of Middleton said he got home from work and decided to make the half-mile trip to Costco. By the time he left, around 8 p.m., the roads were under water. “Cars were floating around here,” he said, gesturing at Greenway Boulevard outside the Fairfield Inn and Suites, where he sought refuge in a first-floor hallway until rising water forced him to head upstairs. “Wrong place, wrong time,” Kamat said as he retrieved possessions from his flooded Honda CR-V Tuesday. Caryn Daane of Milwaukee was in town for an insurance industry conference. After the hotel lost power she wandered outside to see what was going on. A motorist who was rescued from floodwaters on Greenway Boulevard and a hotel guest whose first-floor room was flooded ended up spending the night in her third-floor room. “We had a little sleepover,” she said. Daane said she watched the water rise around her Jeep Cherokee until only the windshield and roof were visible. Nico Meyer of Atlanta and Erika Botes, who was visiting from South Africa, were eating dinner nearby at P.F. Chang’s when the water began rising. Meyer said they attempted to drive to the Country Inn and Suites across the street, but “it was just a flood.” They retreated to the restaurant, where they stayed until about 11:30 p.m. With water lapping at the door, Meyer said about a dozen guests formed a human chain, holding hands as they waded through waist-deep water back to the hotel, which had no electricity but was dry. Mike and Loretta Polhill were heading home to Freeport, Illinois, after having dinner with friends on Old Sauk Road at about 7 p.m. but pulled into the hotel parking lot to escape the rising water. “It was the scariest trip ever,” Loretta Polhill said. “We couldn’t even see the road.” Marne Renn of Tomahawk watched the water rise around the nearby Costco from her room on the third floor of the hotel. Standing in the muddy parking lot waiting for a ride, Renn said the flood brought out a spirit of camaraderie among the guests. “One guy opened his room,” she said. “Everyone helped everyone.” State Journal reporters Barry Adams and madison.com editor Jeff Richgels contributed to this report. [Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect a correction. An earlier version misstated the unofficial rainfall total in Cross Plains after the National Weather Service office in Sullivan said a weather observer misread his rain gauge. The correct total should have been 14.33 inches.]<doc-sep>
Record-breaking rain in Wisconsin on Monday night and into Tuesday caused flash flooding, prompted evacuations and turned a search and rescue mission into a recovery mission. The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a flood warning for multiple areas of southern Wisconsin including Western Madison, Mount Vernon and Middleton. "Due to the extreme nature of this rainfall and the impact it has had this flood warning will extend out through tonight to account for these ongoing flooding issues," the warning said. Dane County Executive Joe Parisi declared a state of emergency because of the widespread flooding on Tuesday morning and evacuations were ordered for the Wisconsin towns of Black Earth, Cross Plains and Mazomanie. In Black Earth and Mazomanie, emergency management called residents on Monday evening and informed them of the need to leave their homes and instructed them to go to the town hall or the fire department, according to WMTV. Josh Wescott of the Dane County Emergency Management told WMTV that there have been several calls on Tuesday morning of people stranded in their homes and on the roofs of their cars after encountering severe flooding. On Monday evening around 9:00 p.m. CDT, the Madison Fire Department received a call about a man who was missing after being stranded in his car in the raging waters. The department told Madison.com in a statement that the car was swept into an embankment with three passengers inside. "Bystanders assisted the three occupants out of the vehicle," the department explained. "Two were pulled to safety, and the third was ripped from the hands of a bystander by a strong current in the floodwaters." Madison Police Department spokesman Joel DeSpain told Madison.com that the driver of the car, a man in his 70s, was unable to open his door because of the water, which was filling the car. A husband and wife rushed to help the stranded passengers and the wife was able to grab one passenger, a woman in her 50s who was swept under by the current, by the hair and pull her out and to safety. The driver of the vehicle was able to get out of the car and two men tried to pull him to safety, but DeSpain said, "despite heroic efforts, they were unable to keep him from being sucked under the car." What began as a search and rescue for the man who was swept away, turned into a recovery mission on Tuesday morning and diving crews began searching for his body. The rain was so heavy that it likely broke a 72-year-old state record for rainfall within a 24-hour period. The NWS received reports of up to 13 inches of rain in some areas, which would surpass the 1946 record of 11.72 inches by 1.28 inches. Heavy rain knocked out power for an estimated 6,000 Madison Gas and Electric customers on Monday, but as of Tuesday around 11:30 a.m. EDT, only about 600 customers remained without power.