'We Lost Our Whole Downstairs': Cleanup Just Getting Started For Eastwick Residents Following Flooding
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The after-effects of Tropical Storm Isaias continue after a huge tree fell Friday onto power lines in Bala Cynwyd. A portion of Belmont Avenue from David Road to Colwyn Lane is closed.
The ground is so saturated that the tree lifted from its roots.
Meanwhile, cleanup continues in Philadelphia's Eastwick neighborhood after flooding ravaged the area. It could be weeks before residents get things back to normal.
When the Darby Creek overflowed its banks on Tuesday, there was little time to react.
"There's two breezeways from the Darby Creek, it overflowed and it was coming. There were waves," resident Milt Goodman said.
Homes and cars along 80th Street and Lindbergh Boulevard in Eastwick were quickly submerged by rising waters. Neighbors were left with little time to salvage basements and garages.
"It's very exhausting, I'm getting really depressed over it," resident Michelle Roberts said. "I don't know what to do."
"The water was coming down almost like a dam, running right in the street. By the time we got into the front of the house, the water was already past the tires on the car," resident Clinton Jackson said.
The water rose so quickly that Halimah Ahmed, Jackson and their kids were rescued from their second-floor window by boat.
"Ultimately, we're just glad that everybody made it out safely," Jackson said.
On top of all of that, when all of the water came down from the landfill and flooded this neighborhood, of course, the power went out. Just this evening, it's been turned back on.
On Friday evening, inspectors with the city's Department of Licenses and Inspections were in the neighborhood. A spokesperson says employees will continue reaching out to those affected to gain access to their properties.
Ahmed and Jackson say the Red Cross has already provided them with temporary housing.
"The Red Cross, they put us up at a hotel until, well we just found out they're going to extend it until Sunday or Monday. As for the rental property, we have to leave," Ahmed said.
Like so many others in the neighborhood, the next step is what to do if these homes are deemed unsafe to return.
For Ahmed and Jackson, it likely means finding a new place to live.
"This only has to happen to me one time," Jackson said. "We lost a lot, everybody did."
Three days after Isaias, the daunting cleanup and drying out process is still underway with the Red Cross now assisting hundreds who have been displaced.
"We have more than 300 people staying in our Red Cross shelters last night. We've served about 550 meals as of last night, including hundreds of snacks to people. Today we're out doing this damage assessment," said Sophie Kluthe, with the Red Cross.
Isaias Power Outages Persist In New Jersey
While Goodman's home is still habitable, he says it's an unpleasant situation as they dig out valuables and clear out mud-soaked belongings.
"Furniture, clothes, appliances, the heater and air conditioner -- we lost our whole downstairs. I guess all of us did," Goodman said.
The Office of Emergency Management has set up a headquarters at Penrose Elementary School for people that need help.
Councilman Kenyatta Johnson and Philabundance are also giving away food boxes to those in need.
CBS3's Natasha Brown and Greg Argos contributed to this report.
