Reporting from Jacksonville, Fla. — Eloise Williams fell asleep Sunday night with the Bible on her chest, thanking the Lord that her house had survived the punishing assault of Hurricane Irma as it passed through.
But then the 63-year-old awoke Monday morning to the floodwater that followed the storm.
“I’ve never seen anything like this in my 30 years in Jacksonville,” said Williams, who lives in a small bungalow in the quaint riverside neighborhood of San Marco. Even if she had lived in Jacksonville 100 years, she may have never seen anything like it. The northeastern Florida city ultimately was one of the hardest hit on the mainland by the storm, which flooded its downtown and several of its neighborhoods.
Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry declared it the worst flood the city has experienced in a century, as he urged residents who needed a rescue to waive a flag in front of their home.
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The water came barreling down the city’s streets and kept rising, to the point where it was at shoulder height in some places. By Tuesday, the city was filled with insurance adjusters, sump pumps and tears. Some streets still were underwater. Floodwater poured out of car doors when they were opened. Locals tried to cope by sharing with one another Facebook videos they posted of swimming on their streets during the storm.
The deluge seemed to take everyone by surprise. Flooding is normal in Jacksonville — but not like this. Harley Pickard, 29, who lives on the ground floor of a fourplex on the St. Johns River, had stayed up until 4 a.m. Monday to watch for any trouble the tide might bring in. All seemed fine.
A few hours later, he awoke to find the room filled with water and his dog floating by on his doggie bed. “People did not realize how fast this would happen,” the U.S. Marine Corps veteran said.
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By 10 a.m., the water was up to his waist in the apartment. At that point, Pickard had grabbed a small kayak and his surfboard, which already was starting to float down the street, and began ferrying his friends, neighbors and local pets to safety.
Pickard, who lost most everything he has, other than his wallet and an heirloom watch, put evacuees in the compact kayak and their pets stood on the surfboard tied to it. He waded through the rising stormwater, guiding them out of it. Then he and his friends went back and looked for others who needed help.
“We woke up, and all of a sudden, we were part of the river,” said Joshua Young, 32, who lives in the same building and took part in the kayak rescue.
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Down the street, a sobbing woman carefully placed dozens of soaked family photos on the hood of her car and on sheets laid out in front of her home, hoping they could be salvaged. Much of the floodwater had receded, but the high-water line was clearly visible on cars and garage doors throughout the neighborhood, rising nearly waist high. Neighbors shared iPhone shots of their cars almost completely underwater.
In the San Marco area of Jacksonville, Fla., on Sept. 12, 2017, Joshua Young takes some of his personal belonging out by kayak after flooding hit his apartment building following Hurricane Irma.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
“The worst we had ever seen before was up to this second step,” said Dan Harris, 59, as he stood at the entrance of his home, showing where he expected the water to stop. Instead, it snaked over that step and through the entire first floor of his home, where he runs a photography business.
The leather couch and antique dresser in the living room were on bricks. Harris kept putting more bricks underneath as the water flooded in, hoping to keep the furniture above it. He succeeded. But much of the rest of his ground floor was a wreck. Still, Harris said it could have been worse. His neighbor’s home sat a foot and a half lower than the elevation of his. “So it’s a foot and a half more water,” Harris said. “Her stuff had floated from the living room to the bedroom.”
Closer to the river, Carol Orr checked on his 82-year-old dad, Bernard. Bernard Orr was in a 12-story building for retired people, where the water had come right through the first floor. It wasn’t enough to get him to evacuate.
“He didn’t want to leave,” the 61-year-old son said. “The water rescue folks came by. They took out some folks who wanted to go. He stayed. So I came by to check on him. … They take pretty good care of them over there. They set up an area where folks can grill the food they have, or plug in Crock-Pots.”
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Trailer homes at the Sea Breeze trailer park in the Florida Keys town of Islamorada were destroyed by Irma.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Tom Ross inspects the damage to his three-story condominium building in Islamorada.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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The remains of a boat in Islamorada.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Brooke Gilbert, 15, and her father, Mike Gilbert, look at the ruins of her grandparents’ condominium building in Islamorada.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Laura Gilbert retrieves the mailbox from her father’s condominium in Islamorada after it was swept away during the storm.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Sand and debris block access to trailer homes in Islamorada.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Greg Garner embraces neighbor Linda Nettles in front of his longtime family home that lost part of its roof after Tropical Storm Irma hit Sullivan’s Island, S.C.
(Mic Smith / Associated Press)
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Israel Alvarado, 25, tries to open a gate blocked by fallen tree branches to retrieve a generator in Bonita Springs.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Rescue workers help a couple evacuate their flooded home in Jacksonville.
(John Raoux / Associated Press)
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Charlotte Glaze, left gives Donna Lamb a hug as she floats out some of her belongings in floodwaters in Jacksonville,.
(Dede Smith / Associated Press)
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Ron Colby, 70, leaves his flooded Bonita Springs home after staying during Hurricane Irma. He said he was OK with the wind but that at 3:30 in the morning the water started to rise.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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A dresser floats by Gilberto Diaz in his Bonita Springs neighborhood. Originally from Guatemala, Diaz has lived in Florida since 1994.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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In Bonita Springs, floodwaters reached waist deep in some areas on Monday, flooding homes and cars.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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A block from the ocean in Naples, the water was still a foot deep from storm surge. Homeowner Terry Clontz put up a “no wake” sign because people were driving by too fast, pushing water farther onto his property.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Floodwaters surround a marina in Key Largo on Monday following Hurricane Irma.
(Wilfredo Lee / Associated Press)
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Mobile homes in Key Largo, Fla., lie in ruins on Monday after Hurricane Irma.
(Wilfredo Lee / Associated Press)
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Floodwaters surround Gilbert’s Resort in Key Largo on Monday.
(Wilfredo Lee / Associated Press)
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Kelly McClenthen returns to see the flood damage to her home with her boyfriend, Daniel Harrison, in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma in Bonita Springs, Fla.
(Gerald Herbert / Associated Press)
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Terry Thompson is relieved. He rode out the storm in his home in Riverwood Estates in Naples. Although the Naples area of Florida was hit hard by Hurricane Irma, damage wasn’t nearly as bad as anticipated.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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A woman leaves her flooded home the morning after Hurricane Irma swept through the area in Fort Myers, Florida.
(Spencer Platt / Getty Images)
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People tend to a car that flipped over on Cape Coral Parkway during Hurricane Irma, in Cape Coral.
(Gerald Herbert / AP)
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A man clears the drain next to his house in Estero, Fla., during the lull in winds as the eye of the hurricane passes over.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Evacuees use flashlights so others can maneuver around the stairway at Hampton Inn and Suites in Estero, Fla.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Guests gather in the lobby of Hampton Inn and Suites in Estero, Fla., to watch the hurricane gusts.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Darla Talia Ferro, 40, and her two parakeets ride out Hurricane Irma in the lobby of Hampton Inn and Suites in Estero, Fla.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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John Krowzow, 74, wades in floodwater to check out his homes in Corkscrew Woodlands, a park with 640 senior mobile home units in Estero, Fla.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Peter Moodley wades through floodwater in downtown Miami.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Two men walk through a downed tree as Hurricane Irma’s full force strikes Miami.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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A woman films the damage from a house whose roof was blown off near downtown Miami.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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A vehicle drives through debris caused by Hurricane Irma, in Miami.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Weather reporters in downtown Miami jump and cling on to illustrate the force of the winds caused by Hurricane Irma.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Weather reporters do a stand-up as the force of the winds caused by Hurricane Irma hit Miami.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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A cargo truck is tipped over by the wind caused by Hurricane Irma in Miami.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Storm surge floods the Brickell neighborhood of Miami.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Streets are empty in downtown Miami as the wind picks up speed during Hurricane Irma’s approach.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Maria Koenig, 63, of Estero, Fla., and her dog, Baeley, sit by the window at their Estero hotel so Maria can keep an eye on the storm on Sunday.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Glen Sinatra, 69, from Naples, says he feels lucky to be at a hotel in Estero instead of a shelter. He’s nervous about the storm and says he’s trying not to worry his children about the conditions.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Jimmy Alfano, of Ft. Myers, holds onto Alec Hoskins who is autistic, while watching the storm gusts through the window of their Estero hotel with Frank Pairs.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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A car sits abandoned in storm surge along North Fort Lauderdale Beach Boulevard as Hurricane Irma hits the southern part of the state.
(Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)
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The metal canopy at a gasoline station is overturned by high winds brought on by Hurricane Irma.
(Wilfredo Lee / Associated Press)
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Youssef Ezzou, left, and Fadel Beznbachir roam outside to check out the conditions in Miami as Hurricane Irma nears the mainland.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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A construction crane whose arm broke off towers over a building as high wind blows through downtown Miami on Sunday.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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A man and woman run to safety in Miami as winds from Hurricane Irma bear down on Sunday.
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Storefronts in Miami are damaged as Hurricane Irma’s winds hit Miami.
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Dustin Terkoski, Palm Bay Police officer surveys the scene after a possible tornado touched down at Palm Pam Bay Estates.
(Red Huber / Orlando Sentinel)
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A man braces against the wind by the Miami River on Sunday as water levels surge.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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A man stands by the Miami River as the water level surges on Sunday.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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The waves on the Miami River begin to surge Sunday as winds pick up speed upon Hurricane Irma’s approach.
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Brian Williams, of Maryland, fights the winds in downtown Fort Myers.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Trees fall as winds pick up speed early Sunday as Hurricane Irma approaches Miami.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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A TV reporter braces against the wind as Hurricane Irma approaches Miami.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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The outer bands of Hurricane Irma start to reach Florida on Saturday, with clouds over the Miami skyline.
(Joe Raedle / Getty Images )
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People wade through a flooded street in Havana after Hurricane Irma battered central Cuba.
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Thousands wait Saturday to enter a storm shelter set up at Germain Arena in Estero, Fla., south of Fort Myers.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Jean Turner, 79, waits to get into a shelter with a few of her belongings as rain begins to fall Saturday in Estero, Fla.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Sherri Bourdo, 32, and Anthony Guidry, 40, look out over the water in Naples, Fla, in advance of the arrival of Hurricane Irma.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Lisette Toroella and Tatiana Morera play on the beach as storm clouds approach in Miami Beach.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Adam Todd, does a handstand while skateboarding down a virtually empty Ocean Drive in Miami Beach.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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Abby Jenkins walks against the wind with her luggage and umbrella to get to safety, in Miami Beach.
(Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
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James Sampero surfs in the churning ocean as Hurricane Irma approaches.
(Joe Raedle / Getty Images)
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Cubans wade through the rubble from a collapsed building in Havana on Saturday.
(Yamil Lage / AFP/Getty Images)
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A woman and child use a blanket as protection from wind and rain as they walk in Caibarien, Cuba. Hurricane Irma battered Cuba on Saturday with deafening winds and unremitting rain, pushing seawater inland and flooding homes before turning toward Florida.
(Desmond Boylan / Associated Press)
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Annette Davis plays with her son Darius, 3, while staying at a shelter in Miami on Saturday after evacuating from their home in Florida City ahead of Hurricane Irma.
(David Goldman / Associated Press)
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Residents walk through rain brought on by Hurricane Irma in Caibarien, Cuba. The powerful storm battered Cuba on Saturday and continued its march toward Florida.
(Desmond Boylan / Associated Press)
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Palmetto Ridge High School is a shelter for people with special needs near Naples, Fla. Many seniors plan to ride out the storm there.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Francesca DeLuca, age 20, will be waiting for 10 hours for her flight back to Milan, Italy. She had been visiting a friend in Miami by herself, but the area where she was staying is under mandatory evacuation. At Miami International Airport, the last flights will be this afternoon with the airport closing tonight at 6pm. Most travelers are taking flights to anywhere they can find.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Boats that can’t be evacuated are tied off in canals to protect them from Hurricane Irma on in Key Largo, Florida. The entire Florida Keys are under a mandatory evacuation notice as Hurricane Irma approaches the low-lying chain of islands south of Miami.
(Marc Serota / Getty Images)
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Hundreds wait in line on Friday at Home Depot in Miami to get supplies line sheets of plywood, and anything else they can find, to board up their homes. Police were on the scene to keep things orderly.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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In the Little Haiti neighborhood of Miami, Fritz Drinks, whose family is from Haiti, helps load sandbags at Little Haiti Hardware and Lumber. Many people in the area are refusing to evacuate in advance of Hurricane Irma.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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In downtowm Miaimi, people wait to get on a bus headed to Orlando under a mandatory evacution plan. Preparations are underway for Hurricane Irma as the storm makes its way toward Florida.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Stores are boarded up in Miami Beach in advance of Hurricane Irma.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Preparations for Hurricane Irma are underway in Miami Beach as the storm makes its way toward Florida.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Genaro Dacosta, 65, of Miami Beach loads sandbags in advance of Hurricane Irma. He says he can’t evacuate the area because he has a monkey.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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An aerial photograph taken and released by the Dutch Department of Defense on Wednesday shows damage from Hurricane Irma in Philipsburg, St. Maarten.
(Gerben van Es / AFP/Getty Images)
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Juan Negron, third from left, prepares to start up a power generator in front of what’s left of his damaged property in Culebra, Puerto Rico, after the passage of Hurricane Irma.
(Carlos Giusti / Associated Press)
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Residents come out to survey the damage caused by Hurricane Irma in Nagua, Dominican Republic.
(Tatiana Fernandez / Associated Press)
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People on Thursday look over damage from Hurricane Irma on a sand-covered street of Marigot, near the Bay of Nettle, on the island of St. Maarten.
(Lionel Chamoiseau / AFP/Getty Images)
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Inmate trustees from the Brevard County Jail fill sandbags for Meritt Island, Fla., residents in advance of Hurricane Irma.
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Motorists leave Key Largo, Fla., ahead of Hurricane Irma.
(Alan Diaz / Associated Press)
The stilts that kept the water out of Serena Brown’s home for years couldn’t protect it from this surge. As she picked up the garbage bins and other trash that had floated over to her lawn, a generator wheezed from the back of one of her two soaked pickups. It was powering an air-conditioning unit.
“We have six dogs,” said Brown, 67. “I’m worried about them getting overheated.” She’s hoping the water came in and out quickly enough that her hardwood floors will dry out.
In the city’s main downtown business district, the garage of the towering Wells Fargo building could be mistaken for a swimming pool. A stench filled the air along the riverside promenade, which was caked with mud and other debris that had washed in. Crews tried to scrub the street, but getting up all that mud was not easy.
“It blew me away,” said Lisa Cattanach, 49. “The river came all of the way up into the city.”
She pulled out her phone to share the Facebook video of her friend Rene Llano kayaking back to the flooded house nearby where Llano lived. “I have lost everything,” Llano said in the video, which showed water flowing through her entire ground floor.
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The floodwater didn’t discriminate by race or income level. It flowed into fancy neighborhoods and hardscrabble communities where residents already were struggling to afford to stay in their homes.
“It was horrific,” said Fred Childs, 61, who lives in one of the modest homes by the Trout River. “The water was coming in through pipes that usually go out to the river. Houses were inundated. Some of these streets are totally devastated.”
Evan Halper is a former staff writer who wrote about a broad range of policy issues out of Washington, D.C., with particular emphasis on how Washington regulates, agitates and very often miscalculates in its dealings with California. Before heading east, he was the Los Angeles Times bureau chief in Sacramento, where he spent a decade untangling California’s epic budget mess and political dysfunction.
