Since major floods washed over Milwaukee more than two weeks ago, two men have been found drowned and at least two others are missing, all from the same homeless encampment.
Relatives and homeless advocates are sounding the alarm, calling on the city to do more to determine whether the deaths are related to the floods and locate those who are missing.
Meanwhile, police have said they need more evidence to conduct a search.
Here’s what to know.
Who are the men who died?
Juan Carlos Sierra Campos, 48, and Isaias Serna, 72, were found drowned in the days after the Aug. 9 flood.
Both men were known to live at the encampment under the bridge at the intersection of South Chase Avenue and South 1st Street, on the banks of the Kinnickinnic River, according to homeless outreach groups.
Campos was recovered from Lake Michigan on Aug. 10, while Serna was found in the river on Aug. 13.
MiniStreets Urban Christian Outreach Mission, a faith-based homeless advocacy group, visits the encampment every Friday. Co-founder Linda Alvarado recalls Campos and Serna being at the encampment the day before the floods.
Campos’ family has created a GoFundMe page to cover the estimated $12,000 to send his body back to his home country in Honduras.
Has the city declared that these deaths are related to the floods?
The Milwaukee Police Department and Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office said Campos’ death did not “appear” to be flood-related. They have not clarified how they made that determination.
At a news conference Aug. 10, shortly after Campos’ body was discovered, Mayor Cavalier Johnson said there were no flood-related deaths within the city. The mayor was unaware of the Campos’ death at the time, said spokesperson Jeff Fleming.
Serna’s body was recovered three days later. The medical examiner’s office has said his death is possibly related to the floods.
Who else is missing from the encampment?
Family members say Miguel Flores, 59, who also lived at the encampment, has been missing since the floods. Arturo Vazquez, Flores’ nephew, reported him missing on Aug. 14.
Flores visited his sister’s home and Kaszube’s Park every day, but the family hasn’t seen him since the day before the flood, said Juan Vazquez, another nephew of Flores.
Flores also hasn’t returned to work, all of which is out of character for him, the Vazquez brothers said.
Another man known only as “Pedro” lived at the encampment and hasn’t been seen since the floods, according to Alvarado. Alvarado and others with the outreach group recall Flores, Pedro, Campos, Serna and possibly one other person being there the day before the floods.
What efforts are being made to find the missing people?
The Milwaukee Police Department isn’t actively searching for the men. The department said it needs more evidence that they were swept away in the floods, and Mayor Cavalier Johnson’s office has said it relies on emergency services to make decisions about search efforts.
Instead, search efforts have been led by relatives and community members.
On Aug. 22, Brew City Kayak and Milwaukee Pedal and Paddle Tavern rounded up four kayaks and a 22-foot electric Milwaukee Duffy boat to search the Kinnikinnic River for him for several hours.
Flores’ family also organized an all-day search in and around the river on Aug. 23. More than 40 volunteers showed up, and Brew City Kayaks lent about 10 to 15 kayaks for free.
Arturo Vazquez says the family plans to search the river again on Aug. 30.
Why isn’t more being done to locate the missing men?
The Milwaukee Police Department does not consider Flores “critically” missing. This label is reserved for certain vulnerable groups, such as children or people with certain health conditions, that would trigger a more active search.
The department’s standard operating procedure says people missing following disasters can be considered “critically” missing, but a department spokesperson said Flores does not qualify because nobody “observed him being swept away by the water.”
How many people lived at the encampment?
It’s difficult to know for certain. Homeless advocates say that the encampment has had several people living there over the years.
This encampment was one of the first spots Street Angels began visiting when the group was founded in 2016, said co-founder Eva Welch. Sometimes just one person was there, and other times several, Welch said.
Sarah Young, a volunteer with the homeless shelter Mr. Bob’s Under the Bridge, said anywhere between five to 12 people lived at the encampment.
Gina Castro is a Public Investigator she can be reached at gcastro@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: What we know about the 2 homeless men found drowned after the Milwaukee floods and the 2 still missing
Reporting by Gina Lee Castro, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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