BEAUMONT, Texas — Volunteer firefighters in Roganville kept very busy rescuing residents from their flooded homes on Wednesday.
The volunteer firefighters spent about 18 hours on Wednesday helping rescue residents and animals, including livestock, from the flood waters according to fire chief Mike Smith in a post on the department's Facebook page.
"I absolutely feel like this was a worse event than Harvey ever was. The water was deeper. We had water in spots this time that we didn't have in Harvey," Smith told 12News.
Roganville is about 12 miles north of Kirbyville.
The firefighters made around 75 high water rescues including "high water vehicle rescues and swift water boat rescues," according to Smith.
"He had fallen asleep in his car in the woke up to water in his lap. Scared to death. He was probably 18, 19, 20-years-old. A young guy," Smith said.
First responders floated through several feet of murky water to rescue stranded families.
"We carried people and their fur babies," Smith wrote.
The volunteer firefighters also helped save horses and cows from the Kirbyville Auction Barn the post said.
Roganville Volunteer Firefighters along with other agencies worked tirelessly to make 75 rescues, saving around 150 people.
"We had ZERO loss of life. We give that praise to God Almighty," Smith said in the post.
Roganville volunteer firefighters make more than 70 rescues during flooding
Smith mentioned that the firefighters are "blessed with equipment" that let them move through the flood waters and get to areas most people could not.
"No matter what department shows up. So I mean this is what we train for. This is what we do. High water rescue is not something that we do regularly. But, we do our best to stay ready for that," Smith said.
Though the firefighters did have some issues with their high water rescue truck, Smith wrote that it "performed well and did its job up to that point."
The Roganville firefighters have a nickname for their former military truck and refer to it as the "Punisher."
He made assurances that the large truck would be working again soon.
Smith told 12News Thursday afternoon it would take at $300 or more to make repairs. The department is accepting donations to the get 'Punisher' back up and running.
In photos that Smith posted firefighters were seen with the water above the top or their seats.
"Thank you to my team and all other responders for a job well done," Smith wrote in the post.
Gloria and Shannon Thomas are staying at the rescue shelter at Assembly of God in Kirbyville. Today they assessed the damage on their home.
"You see stuff out of place. That it takes two or three men to move. Water moved stuff from the front of my house to the back of my house. It moved stuff down through the woods," Gloria said.
They are concerned for their health.
"The water damage underneath is a concern for us because of mold and mildew setting up," said Gloria.
They hope the community comes together to help everyone in need.
"Whatever is laid on a person's heart to do for another person and for us, as a community, and as a whole, as family we will be grateful. And accept anything that comes our way," she said.
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This is a developing story. We will update with more if and when we receive more confirmed information.