Officials: 245 people, 57 pets evacuated due to flooding in Amarillo

AMARILLO, Texas (KFDA) - The Amarillo Fire Department says around 245 people and 57 pets have been evacuated due to flooding in the area of South Virginia Street.

Local and state resources are working together to help and rescue those impacted by the flooding in the area of 2727 South Virginia Street, Amarillo Fire Department said.

Four people were taken to the hospital for non-critical chronic conditions.

Evacuees were taken to a temporary shelter at Austin Middle School where the Red Cross, Amarillo Animal Management and Welfare and first responders worked to aid those displaced.

Since then, evacuees have been taken to the Amarillo Civic Center.

One resident says he was woken up to a knock at his door around 1:30 a.m. this morning and realized water was coming into his apartment.

“I was asleep and my neighbor woke me up, and it had been raining, and we opened the door and it was a flood,” said Clyde. “So they took everybody out and by the grace of God we’re still living, but we lost everything.”

Another person who evacuated said they don’t know if they’ll have anything left once they can go home.

“Everybody kinda has the same mindset of, ‘Do I have something to go home to? And if so, how much damage?’ and a lot of us are also family,” said Allen Contreras. “I mean, there’s just so much that until it happens to you, you really don’t think about it until it like slaps you in the face, and you’re going to be like ‘Okay, I gotta keep my family safe.’”