MANAWA (NBC26) — A massive volunteer effort got underway in Manawa April 15 to make sandbags and reinforce the city's water treatment plant as flooding disrupts neighborhoods across Waupaca County.
Crews started at 5:00 a.m. Wednesday morning, with hundreds of volunteers bagging, tying, and stacking sandbags to save the plant from serious damage. The volunteers included neighboring fire departments, residents, and high schoolers excused from class.
Zac Van Asten, the Waupaca County emergency management director, noted the progress made by the community.
"I’m happy to say we are looking really good, we have that well contained right now. The wastewater treatment plant is fortified very well right now so things are looking in the right direction," Van Asten said.
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City of Manawa Mayor Mike Frazier emphasized the importance of protecting the sewer plant.
"It would cause millions of dollars of damage," Frazier said.
Adelyn Schertz, a Manawa High School student, was among those who left class to assist.
"I asked if I could get my phone to call my mom to get me out and I came down here to start helping," Schertz said.
For many, the memory of Manawa’s dam failure two years ago is fresh in their minds. That failure put the wastewater treatment plant offline, flooding basements with sewage and causing toilets to stop working.
Neighbor Sandie Wilz recalled the impact of the previous disaster.
"A lot of basements were flooded, a lot of sewer backup in basements which causes a lot of damage," Wilz said.
Even for the mayor, the current flooding stands apart.
"In my 73 years on this planet, no, even the flood two years ago was not that high or even the flood in 1970 it was not this high," Frazier said.
The plant is secure now, with sandbags and cement lining the walls. Officials advise those in Waupaca County to sign up for RAVE alerts to be best informed for life-threatening emergencies.
