Residents Asked To Conserve Water After Sewers Overflowed Sunday

MILWAUKEE COUNTY — Sewers dumped raw waste into local waterways following heavy rain in some parts of Milwaukee County from Saturday into Sunday.

Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) is asking local residents to consider reducing water use during heavy rain.

2-3 inches of rain in some parts of the metro area prompted the overflow into creeks and rivers on Sunday. MMSD's combined sewer system can have overflows such as this because the same sewer pipes used to get rid of rainwater are also used to get rid of waste, according to MMSD's website.

The sewer overflows were only in areas serviced by MMSD's combined sewer, which includes many suburbs around Milwaukee. Milwaukee's deep tunnel project was designed to mitigate this problem. Since its completion in the '90s, sewer overflows have dropped dramatically. The overflow on Sunday is the first this year, according to MMSD's website.

The overflow came when much of Milwaukee County was hit with heavy rain. The rain started again Monday — about half an inch of rain has fallen across the area.

The rainfall through the weekend prompted activation of the Water Drop alert. MMSD is asking residents to use less water during rainfall. We may see more rain through the week, but Tuesday is projected to be hot and humid.

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Water Drop alerts ask for people use less water during heavy rainfall. That can include holding off on dishes, doing laundry later or taking a shorter shower.

Beaches in the area have been closed following the sewer overflow. According to the Wisconsin DNR website that monitors beach closures, Bradford Beach and South Shore Beach are closed.