OCONTO (NBC26) - Many locals have been preparing for the change of two seasons within 24 hours.
It's been nothing short of a winter “water”land in northeast Wisconsin. Eyes will remain locked on local rivers for flooding, including the Oconto, Wolf, East, and Waupaca rivers. That's why homeowners in Oconto, have been stocking up for both weather seasons.
"A lot of people are getting sand bags,” said Bailey Marquardt withRoberts Hometown Hardware. “A lot of salt is being sold."
Marquardt said while they've been selling the usual winter necessities, this is the most sand they've sold compared to other years.
"More water stuff like sump pumps,” he said. "Last time this happened was the storm we had this summer."
Matt Lorentson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Green Bay, says while we didn't get as much precipitation as they thought, flooding is still a concern. However, they've turned their attention to the snow storm heading our way over the rain.
So as we prepare to turn back into a winter wonderland, Lorentson adds they're hoping for more snow then rain. Adding, we've been lucky with a few milder days, thawing part of the ground to help soak up some extra water. This time of year, the ground is typically frozen about a foot deep, but the top 3 inches have thawed so far.
Right now, Lorentson said rivers have been behaving and they haven't had any ice jams yet, hoping it'll stay that way.
