Over 160 people are stuck in Three Rivers after floods wash away roads

THREE RIVERS, Calif. (FOX26) — Residents in Three Rivers have been stuck on the other side of the South Fork Bridge with no way in or out as floods destroyed the roadways.

[RELATED]Residents in Pine Flat say they have been stuck in flooded waters without running water

"I didn't even know what to think and there was so much destruction happening around us that I didn't even know where to begin," said Kacie Fleedman who lives in Three Rivers.

Over 160 people live in South Fork, including a large population of elderly residents.

Kacie Fleeman who lives in South Fork said many older people are considered “high risk” for medical conditions.

We couldn't physically get to those stranded so we had to speak on the phone about 30 feet away from residents on the other side of the broken bridge.

According to Sheriff Mike Boudreaux from Tulare County, several communities, including South Fork south of Conley Bridge, mineral King Road east of mile marker four, Ponderosa, and Pine Flat Village are isolated because of bridge failures and washed-out roads.

"Thursday night we have a huge deluge of rain," said Fleeman. "I think actually at our house which is about a mile and a half from here we had about four inches within 12 hours and at that point, things just went south."

Fleeman said the water flowing over the streets isn't even as bad as it once was.

"It's crazy and this is actually a lot lower," she said. "The water was actually up to the fence here on this house behind me and where I'm standing was probably two to three feet underwater."

Fleeman said the only way out for the people who live in South Fork is on emergency roads, but most of them are on private property. Even those have also been damaged by floods.

Tulare County Fire Department is working with CalFire to help drop off food and water to residents with its helicopter.

"There's people that aren't able to get out and get some of those resources that they really need," said Savanna Birchfield a Public Information Officer for CalFire Tulare Unit. "We're concerned about people's safety, that's our priority. We have been doing a lot of mitigation efforts for the flooding."

With another atmospheric river on its way Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service, residents in Three Rivers said at this point they're just going to wait it out

"After seeing all this destruction that has happened we just don't know what to expect."

There is currently a petition to get the National Guard involved in helping with repairs as soon as possible so people can regain access to emergency services and supply stores.

You can find the petition HERE.

You can also upload your weather photos and videos to our Chime In page.