SANFORD, Mich. – Residents were allowed back into their neighborhoods as the floodwaters in Midland County receded.
Houses, garages, vehicles and more were swept away in the devastating Tuesday floods.
READ: ‘Catastrophic’ flooding, evacuations in mid-Michigan as dams fail: What to know
Travis Barringer and Crystal Kerns had the only home in their neighborhood still standing, but it was filled with water and destroyed.
“My turtle was in there. We had her for 6 years and thought for sure she was dead," Kerns said. "We found her. She is alive. It is just crazy. It is unreal.”
The couple and their two daughters said they have their entire lives packed into bags.
The Edenville Dam failed Tuesday night and sent Wixom Lake into a neighborhood just down river.
RELATED: NASA images show difference in rivers, dams after flooding in mid-Michigan
Barringer said the family was planning to leave the area believing the dam failure was a possibility.
Kerns said they are staying with family and are hoping to find a place to call their own for their family and pets.
A GoFundMe has been set up for the family. You can donate here.
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