Houston flood victims tell stories of survival
HOUSTON -- Dircene Martins sent a cell phone video letting the world know that she and her family had survived the quickly rising floodwaters by heading for the attic of their Houston home.
"We were looking down there, afraid if the water [would] go higher or not," Martins told CBS News.
They huddled together as the water from the nearby bayou poured into the house.
"We could not see," Martins described. "We could just imagine what's going on out there."
Every time the family tried to leave, more water would rush in. Her husband, German Varon, wasn't sure they were going to make it out alive.
"One of the hardest things I've had to do in my life is pray with them up there, my family," Varon said, his voice breaking.
Their neighborhood of Meyerland was one of the hardest hit. Thousands of homes across Houston have been damaged by floodwaters.
On Wednesday, rescuers continued to pull people from their homes. Since Sunday, first responders have answered nearly 4,000 calls for help.
High water flooded a treatment plant, spilling more than 100,000 gallons of untreated waste water into the waterways around it.
Back at the Martins, the cleanup will take months -- but getting over that night in the attic will take much longer.