One woman who lives near Badger Mining says she woke up early this morning to squad lights in her driveway.

At 4:30 in the morning, sheriff's deputies started letting people know water could be coming.

"They said you can evacuate if you want. They warned us that the water could be a foot deep through the valley," said Jenni Lien.

Lien says her home is up on a hill, so she wasn't too worried, until about four hours later. That’s when the deputies said the evacuation was mandatory.

"They said 'grab your stuff, we're not sure when the levy will give way.’ I think they were more worried that the creek under the road might wash out the roads and we might not be able to get out if we were there," Lien told us.

So Lien grabbed her dog and plenty of diapers for her three-month-old Kelsey and went to her mom's house about a mile away to wait out the evacuation. It’s something she never thought she'd have to do.

"A short time ago I was discussing with people if we had a flood, what we would do. I said we're not in any danger up on the hill. I never thought about the levee at the sand mine."

Lien was back home by about 6:00 Thursday night. She says her road is still closed a little past her home, closer to Badger Mining.

Original Story:

Friday morning at approximately 12:20 a.m. Badger Mining Corporation (BMC) Taylor Wash Associates on a routine inspection discovered the partial failure of an earthen pond levee on the West portion of the property.

No breach of the levee has occurred, but all precautions are being taken.

The primary concern is the safety of associates and neighbors.

Efforts are underway to alleviate the problem.

The Jackson & Trempealeau County Sheriff & Highway Departments are assisting.

The Mine Safety & Health Administration (MSHA), Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) and Jackson & Trempealeau County Emergency Management Teams were notified and are currently on-site.

No injuries have been reported.

The Emergency Management Teams have suggested evacuation of the potential effected areas along County Highway W South of the intersection with Nerby Road & along River Road just South of State Highway 95.

Several residents of the effected area have evacuated as a precautionary measure.

Temporary shelter has been established.

There is currently no immediate threat to the Village of Taylor or City of Blair.

Local government officials have been contacted and implementing plans should the threat level increase.

The potentially affected areas include the Western corner of the Town of Curran & the Northern part of the Town of Springfield in Jackson County and the Southeastern corner of the Town of Pigeon & the Northeastern corner of the Town of Preston in Trempealeau County.

People are asked to avoid the area.