NORTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) - Residents at an apartment complex in Miami and at a mobile home complex in Northwest Miami-Dade have been left feeling overwhelmed after heavy rains flooded their homes.
Over time, a significant difference could be seen in the water levels outside the apartment building located near Northeast Second Avenue and 71st Street, Wednesday.
For some residents, too much damage has already been done.
“This is crazy,” said Denise Marte whose apartment was flooded. “Look at my shoes.”
Marte never imagined having to wear rain boots as she walked from room to room in her apartment.
She was at her mother’s house during the downpours and returned to her home at around 8 p.m. Tuesday.
“That’s how high it came in here, and as soon as I walked in here, it just broke my heart because obviously, I work real hard for the little stuff that I have,” said Marte, “and this is what I come home to.”
Marte returned for a second time Wednesday morning to get her cat, Puma, and to set aside any clothes for herself and her children that had not been ruined.
Hialeah resident Soledad Mayor said the water came up to her knees, and the flooding was especially hard on her 78-year-old mother, who has already fallen twice since water entered their home.
“My furniture and everything inside is completely wet,” she said through a translator.
Cellphone video shot by a neighbor showed the high levels of water against the building once the rain came to a stop.
Several other homes, appliances and vehicles in Miami-Dade were affected by the heavy rainfall.
A recently renovated cottage in the area of Northeast 82nd Terrace and Eighth Court in Miami will need additional repairs.
“This street was under five feet of water,” Miami resident Nanet Harry said. “That street over there was completely clear, so somebody is not flipping the switch. The drain’s not on, and it’s not OK. These are our houses. There’s no reason for that.”
In Miami Springs, a 7News viewer shot footage of a lake overflowing near Linwood Drive and Hammond Drive.
Marte will be staying in a hotel while she and her neighbors try to figure out what to do next.
“We all going through it right now, you know, and what can we do?” said Marte. “Just, you know, keep on moving and keep our head up, and that’s all we can do right now.”
A day after the downpour, Northwest 102nd Street near 13th Avenue continues to look like a river instead of a road. A resident said flooding is a regular problem in the neighborhood.
Meanwhile, families at a Northwest Miami-Dade mobile home complex are hanging out at the edge of their neighborhood waiting for assistance.
“We’re just waiting for the water to go down or get some help,” Franky Silva said. “They’d rather be out here than inside. It smells; it’s bad. It’s rough, but we’re hanging all in there.”
The families are doing the best they can, but in the back of their minds, they know they will not have much to go back to.
“We got about 6 inches of water,” Silva said. “Other people got 12 inches of water inside the house.”
Bianca Molina ran out with her 2-year-old son because the water kept rising inside of her home.
“I lost clothes, his bed, all his toys,” Molina said. “It was so bad. I had to get out. I put my baby on my shoulders, and I just left.”
Neighbors are trying to pump out the standing water that remains in front of their homes.
“We’d like somebody to come here and help us out,” Silva said. “We need water pumps or something. It’d be nice.”
The American Red Cross showed up twice to the neighborhood, and they said they have helped dozens of families.
Molina wants some assistance, so she and her neighbors can get back to their lives.
“Imagine, I lost everything, whatever help I can get,” Molina said. ”I’m really strong, you know, so I can handle it, but I don’t like my son going through it.”
The American Red Cross continues to help the stranded families, and they are reminding people to have an emergency kit at home, so they are ready for any situation.
South Florida Water Management District said their water managers are closely monitoring the aftermath of the rains since the holiday weekend and are operating the regional flood control system at full capacity.
They further advise that residents contact their local municipalities to report any flooding in their area.
Residents who would like to get sandbags for their homes can pick some up for free thanks to one Northwest Miami-Dade business owner.
Sandbags will be given away at Rudy’s Ready Mix, located at 7301 NW 47th St., starting at 12 p.m., Thursday.
The sandbags will be available for free until supplies last and each vehicle that arrives at the distribution will be able to take home 10 sandbags.
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