More than five inches of rain fell Tuesday night, spinning up at least one tornado in Sussex and leaving Menomonee Falls residents cleaning up flooded basements for the second time in less than a year.
TMJ4 News reached out to Jennifer Alvarez to check on her cat rescue, Doodle’s Ranch and Sanctuary. We first met her last August after floods left several feet of water in the sanctuary, killing two cats and forcing her to temporarily move more than 20 cats into her living spaces.
"I run downstairs and the sewer drain, the water is just pouring out," Alvarez said.
Just four weeks ago, the sanctuary officially reopened with a brand-new water heater, furnace, and a donated washer and dryer. Last night, the water filled up the basement again.
"Now it is ruined again, and it is kind of defeating," Alvarez said.
WATCH: Menomonee Falls residents face flooded basements again after severe storms
There is now a GoFundMe to help the rescue rebuild again.
"I cannot handle this again, like what happened last time," Alvarez said.
Down the street, Audrey Schmidt also saw water coming into her basement. She said after the August storms, she didn't hesitate last night.
"The streets were flooding, and eventually water started coming down to the basement and getting higher and higher," Schmidt said. "I was grabbing stuff, throwing it on my bed, throwing it on our couch down there."
Roberta Stadler, who lives off Lilly Road, did not get water inside last night, but she is worried.
"If it comes up over this slight hill here, then I am in trouble. Then it will go into the house," Stadler said.
Her backyard is filled with the Menomonee River. With two sump pumps running non-stop, she and others can only wait to see what tonight's rains bring.
"You can’t prepare for this, you can’t," Stadler said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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