REEDSBURG (WKOW) -- Dozens of residents in Reedsburg spent Tuesday preparing for a second flood within a week and it's likely to be worse than the first, according to Sauk County Emergency Management.
In late August, dozens of homes were flooded on Reedsburg's west side due to a swollen and raging Baraboo River. Many of the streets could only be traveled by boat.
Once the water receded, flood victims managed to get back inside their homes to start cleaning up.
On Tuesday, they received news that nobody wanted to hear. They would likely be flooded again, according to Sauk County officials.
"It's just heartbreaking to see it. It feels like a whole different town, it's devastation," said Abbie Kenyon, a resident whose home was sparred during the first flood.
She, along with her daughter and other kids, spent Tuesday helping their neighbors.
"I am driving around to see if I can help with anything and you look like you need help. Can I help you?" she asked one neighbor.
Kenyon used her truck to help several people move their items to higher ground. She also spent time sandbagging about 20 homes. She wasn't alone.. Several high school students could be seen driving trucks and creating a chain as they too helped protect people's homes.
"You just feel so empathetic for what they're going through. You just feel like everybody's lives have just been sitting on these curbs the last couple days," Kenyon said.
You could feel the panic and rush throughout some of the streets in Reedsburg on Tuesday evening as many speedily worked to try to save their homes from taking in more water.
"I'm scared and everyone else is scared. I mean what do we expect? We've been told that it's possible it's going to be a whole other foot than it was previously," said Kenyon.
Sauk County officials project the second flood could be six inches higher than the first flood.
"The anxiety of not knowing what to expect. Will it really rise farther than it did before?" she asked.
For more on this story: http://www.wkow.com/story/39025328/2018/09/04/reedsburg-braces-for-a-second-flood-within-a-week