Milwaukee firefighters rescue woman stranded atop car
MCT REGIONAL NEWS By Linda Spice
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
(MCT)
Jun. 19--Several drivers stranded by high waters abandoned their vehicles during overnight storms, but at least one woman waited atop her car -- her cell phone dead -- crying until a Milwaukee firefighter just happened to drive by early Friday.
“Basically, she was returning home from wherever and didn’t see the depth of the water,” said Second Battalion Chief Ralph Gallow, who was returning from a fire when standing water on Capitol Drive forced him to detour to get back to the station house at N. 50th St. and W. Fiebrantz Ave.
Other drivers had left their cars in the 3200 block of W. Townsend St., closing the street early Friday. Gallow expected the street to be closed but drove that way anyway to get a layout of the area.
“So many intersections were impassable for me,” he said after responding to a fire on E. Linnwood Ave. about 2:30 a.m. “It was a real disjointed route to the fire on the east side and the same thing on the way back. I was doing a little preplanning while getting the current conditions.”
When Gallow came upon the woman and her four-door Oldsmobile, he knew she needed help.
“Before she knew it, she was in too deep. Her car died. She made her way out of the vehicle. It filled with water up to the seats. She made it onto the roof,” he said. “Her cell phone battery died. She was truly stranded.”
When a crew arrived from Engine 24, the woman let firefighters know she was afraid of the water and didn’t want to touch it.
Firefighter Tom Wellinghoff helped her get to higher ground.
“It was a traditional fireman’s carry,” Gallow said.
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To see more of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.jsonline.com.
(c) 2009, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
Jun 20, 2009 at 10:31 p.m.
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"Chauvinists"? How quaint. The woman is fine, I merely inquired about the vehicle. Geez!!!
Jun 20, 2009 at 12:40 p.m.
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Well, the status of the male chauvinists is loud and clear.
Jun 20, 2009 at 9:08 a.m.
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Anyone know the status of the Oldsmobile?
Jun 20, 2009 at 7:36 a.m.
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Typical woman......cell battery not charged, and not enough smarts to avoid driving in to the water, and waiting for a "man" to save her. Gloria Steinem would be proud...
Jun 19, 2009 at 9:41 p.m.
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Having lived in an area where flash flooding can occur, water that swamps a car is nothing to take lightly. Just a few inches of running water can lift a car enough to lose traction and float away. A bathroom shower is a whole lot different than dealing with swirling muddy water all around you. One slip and you could be easily be swept under, knocked unconscious by floating debris, etc. My boss and his wife were in their new Cadillac and thought they could make it through what seemed like shallow water. The current increased as did the level of the water at an alarming rate. They ended up climbing up through the moon roof, then jumping to a semi-truck. The car floated off the road and into the creek. I feel for this lady. She was obviously overwhelmed with her situation. Kudos to the fire deparment!
Jun 19, 2009 at 9:11 p.m.
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I agree, displaced worker. There are sure a lot of high and mighty, arrogant people posting today.
Jun 19, 2009 at 5:50 p.m.
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Just another indication of pathetically helpless some people are -- especially without their cell phones to immediately summon aid -- and how government is expected to intervene to save them, even when they are completely capable of WADING OUT of the water themselves (as it appears other people obviously did).
You don't see any cat skeletons in trees, nor people skeletons on top of cars in standing water! Fire should have let her wait, or let her do it herself ... would have been a good lesson in self-reliance (which we seem to be rather short on lately).
Jun 19, 2009 at 4:24 p.m.
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In Milwaukee, heavy rains often mean the sanitary sewer overflows, so touching the water could give you a rash or possibly an e. coli infection, causing diarrhea.
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Note that even the Battalion Chief had trouble reaching the area due to the flooded intersections.
Jun 19, 2009 at 4:10 p.m.
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Not rational. Did she have a valid driver's license?
Jun 19, 2009 at 4 p.m.
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Doesn't like water? Doesn't want to touch it? I bet she stinks to high heaven and her hair must be a nasty mess!
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