Here's why you'll soon see more signs, fences near the Kinnickinnic River drainage tunnel
The Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District on Monday began installing more than 4 miles of fencing along the Kinnickinnic River drainage tunnel on South 27th Street and West Loomis Avenue.
The plan to install the fence is a response to the drowning of two men and a child after heavy rainfall earlier in the summer.
The victims, all Rohingya refugees, were identified as Muhammad Arman Bin Rashidullah, 10, his father, Rashidullah Bin Abdul Hashim, 34, and neighbor Zakaria Bin Gonumeah, 37.
The bodies of the men were discovered days after they jumped in the river to save the boy, who was chasing a soccer ball near his home in the 3800 block of South 25th Street.
MMSD, the Milwaukee Fire Department and the Milwaukee Police Department and District 13 Ald. Scott Spiker worked together on the project after the drownings to bring more safety measures to the area that becomes especially dangerous after heavy rainfall.
More: A 14-year-old was saved from drowning at Menomonee Park in Menomonee Falls on Thursday
Along with the fencing, officials will install signs to help keep people away from the river.
“Nothing we do will ever prevent every tragedy from occurring," Milwaukee police Capt. Eric Pfeiffer said. "But this is a step in the right direction.
"Much of what went into this plan came from talking to the community and talking to students that went to school with Muhammad. ... Through their input, they told us what they thought we should do in order to keep the area safe.”
In the 1960s, concrete slabs were installed along the Kinnickinnic River to reduce flooding by redirecting rushing water away from homes and businesses in the area.
The water in the channels can move at up to 20 feet per second with a force of up to 500 pounds of pressure, making it difficult for anyone who falls in to get out of the water safely, according to MMSD.
Plans to remove the concrete are in the works but will take more than 10 years to complete.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Kinnickinnic River drainage tunnel to get fencing where three drowned
