State emergency officials prepare for floods

State emergency officials are getting ready for flooding as rain causes already-swollen rivers to rise.

The National Weather Service issued flood warnings Wednesday afternoon for rivers including the Black, Crawfish, Fox, Rock, Trempealeau and Yellow rivers. It also issues flood watches for all of southern Wisconsin as well as the northeast corner of the state.

Wisconsin Emergency Management officials have more than 500,000 sandbags ready to go in Buffalo, Green Lake and Waukesha counties.

The flood risks are due to melting snow and heavy rains. Many rivers are expected to rise to moderate and severe flood stages.

Flood safety tips are available through the ReadyWisconsin website,  http://readywisconsin.wi.gov.