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MONONA (WKOW) — A Monona neighborhood is fighting to keep homes from flooding after more rain Monday has area lakes rising.

Volunteer spent the weekend and all day Monday sandbagging homes in the Belle Isles neighborhood of Monona. But neighbors said if the water gets even in inch or two higher, many people may see some flooding in their home.

“The water level is the highest I’ve ever seen it in the 40 years I’ve been here,” said Susan Manning, who has lived in the Belle Isles neighborhood for 40 years.

Weekend rain has caused the channels around islands to rise well above normal.

So everyone on the water piece, and there are probably 90 homes, are vulnerable,” Manning said.

Manning is leading the effort to protect as many homes as possible.

“So when the lake comes up, everything comes up. The entire bays, the entire lake and the channel,” she said. “In the other homes that didn’t birm or don’t have that rise, and have a home that’s flat to the lake, as soon as that water comes over the lake, it will be in their home. So we’ve bagged those homes at closer to four feet.

But she’s not doing it alone.

“I can call Mary (O’Connor) at 6 o’clock in the morning and say, ‘I don’t have any bags sanded. And she’d say, ‘OK.’” And before I know it, we’ve got sand, we’ve got bags,” Manning said. “It is at the top of the rock, which we have birmed at three feet. Never seen it that high. And it’s at the bottom of the sandbags, which are another three feet high. So I’m looking at sandbags that are waist, probably higher than waist high.”

Sandbags have been effective in keeping many homes free of flooding.

“Every home we’ve bagged preventatively, effectively. And when we came back and bagged the breaches, we’ve been able to maintain a safe level for them,” Manning said.

Saving all these homes is a daunting task for anyone. But through it all, Manning remains optimistic.

“It’s like that fabric of our lives. And when you look at a piece of fabric and you see how it’s woven and you see that’s it’s not one person, but it’s the fabric and the threads coming together to make the beautiful piece of fabric, it’s easy to be a part of that,” she said.

“You just hope it doesn’t rain. But if it’s does, we just keep bagging. We just keep bagging.”

Manning said even with high water levels, they feel blessed that the locks on Lake Mendota have remained stable.

The Belle Isles neighborhood in Monona is in need of sandbag volunteers. If you’d like to help, please come to Oneida Park. #wkow#Belleisles #monona #flooding pic.twitter.com/rNpS3isKWJ — David Johnson (@DavidWKOW) September 4, 2018