GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – The East River is still dangerously high, 11 weeks after it went over its banks and into the basements of dozens of homes in Green Bay.
“We are monitoring water levels on a daily basis,” said Chief David Litton of the Green Bay Metro Fire Department.
The City of Green Bay is trying to better communicate its concern to residents after receiving criticism for how it handled the flooding in March.
Litton tells FOX 11 when the city thought the river reached a critical point Monday night, warning messages were posted on various social media pages, city websites, and sent directly to certain residents signed up for the county’s ‘CodeRed’ notifications.
“We’ve always done these kinds of things. I think it’s just manifested itself now because the bay and the lakes are so high and there is really no place for the water to go right now.”
Litton says Monday’s CodeRed notification for the residents near the East River was the third one the city has told the county to issue in the last two months.
The county says it issued six CodeRed notifications when the flooding hit in March.
“We don’t get any notification,” said Brad Janssen, who lives near the East River.
“Nobody tells us anything other than the FOX 11 app that I get when it’s a flood advisory or flood warning.”
Janssen says now that he knows about the county’s CodeRed messages, he’ll be signing up. It can be done through the county’s emergency management web page.
“It would have been nice to get something in the mail saying we could sign up for it.”
The county’s CodeRed notifications can be received through text message, email, social media, or landline calls.
FOX 11 talked off-camera with a handful of residents who say they receive the messages. Most say they appreciate them, but some say they wish they received a message saying something physical is being done to try to prevent water from reaching their home again.
“If you look again across the Midwest, there is flooding going on everywhere,” said Litton.
Some residents also have a concern that Chief Litton has as well.
“Of course, we’re a little worried about the cry wolf syndrome. When you give so many notifications, it tends to dull people’s senses so to speak and they start to stop paying attention to them.”
Right now, the messages are issued on a case-by-case basis. Litton says the city is looking at putting more specific parameters in place.
Sign up for Brown County’s CodeRed notifications
