Dangerous flooding got 'deeper and deeper' in San Diego

Dan Pryor initially called a friend to bring him a vacuum cleaner Monday morning when floodwaters began reaching his home in San Diego.

But within minutes, the volume was no match for even the toughest vacuum cleaner.

“It's about half an inch, but in a few minutes, the water that was leaking turned into 3 inches,” Pryor, 49, said. “The next thing I knew it was 12 inches, then it got to about 18 inches, and I was like 'Okay, this is getting really scary.' “

He knew he and his 15-year-old daughter, who was home sick from school, needed to get away…and fast. While he was trying to get some items out of his safe, the water in the rented apartment in Southcrest continued to rise.

Unable to open the front door due to the water pressure outside, they climbed out a window with their elderly Chihuahua, Jessie. They landed in waist-deep water and attempted to maneuver up the street, which had transformed into a fast-flowing river.

“The water was getting deeper and deeper. … It's incredibly scary to think if we were there two more minutes,” Pryor said. “I'm so happy we're both alive.”

Pryor's family was one of hundreds in San Diego caught in dangerous flash flooding Monday as a storm dumped historic rains on the region. On Wednesday, many were busy with arduous cleaning.

Like other Southcrest residents, Martha Navarro walked through her soaked, muddy and waterlogged home, dealing with the aftermath of what city officials called a “thousand-year storm.”

“Our floorboards lift up because of the water. Our walls are deforming; our kitchen drawers don't even open anymore,” said Navarro, who lives not far from Pryor. “It's basically all we own, and now we have to basically start over.”

San Diego officials said Wednesday they were focused on recovery efforts, with crews still trying to fix storm drain failures that likely contributed to the flooding, as well as helping with trash and debris removal. Two of the city's 15 pumping stations remained out of service; six were washed away during Monday's storm.

The aftermath of flooding opens the exterior of Dan Pryor's home in San Diego.

(Dan Pryor)

“We are still in the cleanup phase and trying to identify all the homes that were affected,” said city spokesman José Ysea. “We know that hundreds of people have been displaced,” he added, but he said there is still no estimate of the number of homes and businesses that were damaged.

The San Diego Fire Department said its crews performed at least 150 rescues on Monday, but only a few injuries were reported. Authorities say no one died in the flooding.

Officials asked residents to complete an online survey to help determine the extent of the disaster and what state or federal assistance might be available. On Tuesday, Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency for San Diego and Ventura counties, with the goal of providing additional resources and minimizing bureaucratic obstacles during the recovery.

“Right now we are cleaning everything and basically throwing everything in the trash,” said Navarro, who had to swim to rescue his dog from the rising waters. On Wednesday, the 34-year-old said his home, like many, reeked of sewage and mold; she wasn't sure it would ever be habitable.

No one was there when the water started rising Monday, but Navarro said her husband noticed the flooding on their security cameras and called her.

“I was like, 'What do you mean the house is flooding?' ” she said. “Then I looked at the cameras and saw the backyard.”

She said the water had already reached the base of her house and that her 3-month-old puppy, Zero, was stranded outside, trying to swim to higher ground. The security cameras then went off when the power went out.

“I was going crazy,” Navarro said. “I ran home from work.”

He drove as far as he could before parking his car and running to save his family's puppy. She was soon practically swimming.

“He [was] deeper and deeper,” said the mother of two. When she got to her black Lab mix, she estimated the water was 5 feet deep, about her height. Her husband wasn't far behind, she said, and the three of them somehow swam to safety.

“We made it out,” Navarro said. “He was carrying our puppy and I was swimming behind, holding on to whatever he could so I could [wouldn’t] drown. …We clung to the railings, the walls and the windows. “We jump over fences and gates.”

“I know I risked my life just to save him,” Navarro said. “I just couldn't leave it behind.”

The couple isn't sure what's next for their family of four, plus Zero. They bought their house less than two years ago and now they barely recognize it. The floods left nothing untouched.

“When I managed to look inside, I saw everything floating,” Navarro said. “Our refrigerator was leaning on its front floating in the water, our kitchen table and our appliances were floating everywhere.”

Atenea Watters couldn't leave her pets behind either when she realized the flooding in her Southcrest neighborhood was becoming dangerous. She discovered a way to take her two dogs and two cats to the roof of her one-story house, before climbing up herself.

“The water was already on my chest,” Watters recalled Wednesday. “It was very scary.”

She continued calling her husband, who was running in her direction but stuck in traffic, to give him updates, but then one of the dogs jumped off the roof. Watters also jumped, carrying the animal to safety, but dropping his phone in the process.

“That was the last contact I had with her until I got to her,” said her husband, Devin Watters.

“I never expected it to rise up to 4½ or 5 feet in the house,” he said. When he arrived at his neighborhood about 45 minutes later, the 36-year-old man said, he had to swim to his house, where he joined his wife and his pets on the roof, waiting for a rescue from the Fire Department. in kayak.

The Watters, new residents of San Diego, have no idea what will happen in the coming days, or even weeks. The landlord has put them up in a hotel, but they know his renters insurance doesn't cover flooding.

“We spent a lot of time packing up the house in New Hampshire,” said Atenea Watters, 37. “Now we lost everything.”

Pryor, a tattoo artist, spent much of the last 48 hours trying to recover some of his daughter's clothing. He said he feels like the dog in the 'This is Fine' meme, “but it's waves instead of fire,” he laughed.

“I'm stressed because I have nowhere to live,” he said, but added, “I feel really lucky to have so many amazing friends.”