All passed. Broward neighborhood families are devastated after losing their homes to flooding

Just north of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport is a small neighborhood called Edgewood – a few dozen paved suburban streets.

A tight-knit community of smiling, working-class people who support each other.

This flashy corner of Broward County has been one of the hardest hit by four days of heavy rain and flooding.

Dozens of cars were immobilized as floodwaters reached over their hoods. Homes were partially submerged and filled with anywhere from a few inches to a full foot of water.

Early figures show Fort Lauderdale received more than 2 feet of rain near Edgewood on Wednesday after several days of heavy rain — a historic amount for a 1-in-500-year storm, according to the National Weather Service.

Read more here: Chest-high water, boat rescued after ‘unprecedented’ rain in Fort Lauderdale area.

Denise Menedez, a 32-year-old mother, moved into the community three weeks ago.

A new stove ready to be installed, a TV with stickers on the wall and newly built furniture decorate her home.

After a hard day’s work, Wednesday she lay in bed and thought nothing of it as the rain shower continued outside. She told her husband Isaan Lopez what she said she could never have imagined.

“The water is starting to come in,” he told her.

With the help of her 15-year-old son Santiago, the couple began to lift all their belongings and furniture off the ground – but the water continued to rise.

As inches turned into feet of flooding, they knew it was time to evacuate. They filled the car with what they could and drove a few streets away to a friends house.

“I never expected something like this to happen,” she said in Spanish. “I’ve never experienced a flood like this before.”

The next day, the trio set off on a mile-long walk through their community to pick up the most important items they left behind.

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As she opened her front door, water poured in and a small black and white mouse scurried through her flooded driveway.

Almost collapsing as she walks into the doorway, she digs into the kitchen to begin transferring food from the fridge to an empty bag.

The living room and kitchen had at least a foot of flooding, with a clearly marked water line another foot above the floor.

As Lopez and Santiago gathered other items, she began throwing away clothes.

The family has no idea what their next move will be or how long the flooding will last.

“We’re trying to find a cure and find a place to live,” she said through tears. “We’ve been here three weeks and everything we just bought, everything we just started is gone.”

A few streets away, Eric Martinez, a 16-year-old student at Stranahan High School in Fort Lauderdale, spent the day kayaking with his small dog, Estrella, on the river’s converted trails.

His house was flooded, his uncle’s and his friend’s camp was flooded.

“This is the first time I have seen this place flooded,” he said.

Romero Ramos was working when the rain storm hit Wednesday. To prevent further damage, the work parking lot began to flood so everyone could head home.

What awaited him was something he had never seen during previous showers.

“We got to our parking lot and the water was coming into the house – eight to nineteen inches,” he said in Spanish.

Ramos said he’s never seen anything this bad and it’s the first time water has entered his home.

The next day, with the interior flooding and the water staining the walls, he chose to look at the situation with clarity and optimism.

“These are things that happen in our lives, so we have to face this because God is in control and we cannot go without his will,” Ramos said.

He is not sure what to do next, as he has never been in such a situation, but hopes that the water will recede and starts to clean up and rebuild.

Facing destruction and tragedy, he still succinctly and gracefully sums up what happened to him and his community.

“That’s right my friend,” he said. “The most important thing is that we live and life goes on…”