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Families displaced after severe flooding

Published:Friday | May 2, 2014 | 12:00 AM
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Mariah Johnson, 16, right, and Kay-Lynn Johnson, 15, wade through standing water to get to a friend's house on Lewis Street in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, on Wednesday . - AP PHOTOS
This image provided by Brantly S. Keiek shows several vehicles that collapsed together with a portion of the Scenic Highway in Pensacola, Florida, on Thursday.
Florida Governor Rick Scott, second from left, visits Forest Creek Apartments following the torrential rain, Wednesday, April 30, 2014, in Pensacola, Fl. Scott said officials they received about 300 calls from stranded residents.
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Florida (AP):

People were plucked off rooftops or climbed into their attics to get away from fast-rising waters when nearly two feet (0.6 metres) of rain fell on the Florida Panhandle and Alabama coast in the span of about 24 hours, the latest bout of severe weather that began with tornadoes in the Midwest.

In the Panhandle on Wednesday, roads were chewed up into pieces or wiped out entirely. A car and truck plummeted 25 feet (7.6 metres) when portions of a scenic highway collapsed. Cars were overturned and neighbourhoods were inundated, making rescues difficult for hundreds of people who called for help when they were caught off guard by the single rainiest day ever recorded in Pensacola.

Boats and Humvees zigzagged through the flooded streets to help stranded residents. At the height of the storm, about 30,000 people were without power. One Florida woman died when she drove her car into high water, officials said.

In Alabama, Captain. David Spies of Fish River/Marlow Fire and Rescue said he was part of a team who found two women and a young boy trapped in the attic of a modular home.

Spies said they received the first call of help before midnight Tuesday but they couldn't find the group until about 8 a.m. Wednesday. By then, the water was two feet (0.6 metres) below the roof. A firefighter used an axe to punch a hole through the roof and free them

There were at least 30 rescues in the Mobile area of Alabama. Florida appeared to be the hardest hit. Governor Rick Scott said officials there received about 300 calls from stranded residents.

- AP