A Texas family who nearly lost everything in last week’s devastating floods is recounting how their dog braved the storm and survived, against all odds.
High school senior Cody Vlasek’s childhood home in the town of Hunt was destroyed on the night of Friday, July 4 — and he told San Antonio affiliate station KENS 5 on July 9 that he thought he had lost his dog as well.
“This was the living room. We had a chair here and a couch there,” the teen said, showing the devastation. “The back fence is where the 100-year flood plain ends, and we’re 20 — almost 30 — feet away from that.”
“The river was to our back fence,” he continued, recalling how quickly the floodwaters rose in the middle of the night.
Cody’s mother, Denise, was among the first in their family to wake up. The teen and both of his parents quickly rushed out of the house. Cody, who recalled the water coming up to his waist, said they had no time to search for his dog before they were forced to make their way to a neighbor’s house uphill.
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“The current — it almost tripped some of us,” he said.
The family’s home had filled with water within 20 minutes, and Cody told KENS 5 that he could hear their neighbors calling for help.
“It was a horrible feeling because you wanted to help them, and you didn’t know what happened to them,” he said. “But you knew, deep down, if you tried going out there, something would happen to you as well.”
Although the Vlaseks were heartbroken to find their home destroyed, Cody discovered a small miracle inside their washing machine once he returned home.
“I had to break my window, and when I climbed through, I heard scratching and a whimper,” the teen recalled. “I turned my head around the corner and saw him just floating in the washer.”
Despite being happily reunited with his beloved pet, the family is still dealing with some devastating losses. Several people they knew didn’t make it out of the flooding alive.”You can replace a house, but you can’t replace lives,” Cody said.
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Central Texas is still reeling from the destructive and deadly floodwaters, which were spurred by nearly unprecedented rainfall that swelled the Guadalupe River, drowning portions of the state’s Hill Country.
The death toll has risen steadily since July 4 and now sits at more than 120, with another 150 people still missing, CNN reported. Among the dead, at least 36 were children.
Camp Mystic, an all-girls Christian summer camp located just off the Guadalupe River, previously confirmed that 27 of its campers and counselors died. Five girls from the camp remain missing, according to authorities.
To learn how to help support the victims and recovery efforts from the Texas floods, click here.
