Girl Uses Computer To Save Trapped Flood Victims
'There Were People Trapped In Their Homes,' Girl Says
POSTED: Saturday, August 23, 2008
UPDATED: 8:13 pm EDT August 23,
2008
 "There were people trapped in their home," Tiffany Monk said. "Water was rising and there was no way out. (There were) people with oxygen tanks and wheelchairs and there was no way out. They needed help."
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BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. -- A girl's e-mailed cry for help and her photos of rising flood waters saved 40 neighbors trapped in a submerged mobile home park.
IMAGES: Top Viewer Flood Photos Top Images
IMAGES: Fay Floods Hospital; Diverts Patients
IMAGES: Canoes - Airboats Used To Flee Floods
Tiffany Monk, 16, stood outside her Melbourne trailer during Tropical Storm Fay on Thursday and noticed floodwaters slowly overtaking her community on Eau Gallie Boulevard."There were people trapped in their home," Monk said. "Water was rising and there was no way out. (There were) people with oxygen tanks and wheelchairs and there was no way out. They needed help."Monk snapped photos of Groveland Mobile Home Park and then sent e-mails."You really have to see this," she said in e-mails she sent along with photos of tires floating by in her road. "We are trapped in. Literally, there is no way out.""Finally, I e-mailed the radio station 107.1 and I was like, 'Nobody seems to be coming in here to help us,'" Monk said. "We need help and we are trapped in. And then 20 minutes after that, news people started showing up here."Emergency personnel realized the severity of the situation and sent large trucks to pull out the elderly and disabled people who had a few feet of standing water inside their trailers.Many were taken to the shelter at Sherwood Elementary School in Melbourne. Police then took some people back into their homes to save personal items."I was just trying to help out the best I could," Monk said. "I've learned that if you actually take action then someone might listen to you.""She was worried about the elderly down there and nobody was doing anything," Monk's mother, Connie said. "So, she decided to get on the computer and see what I can get done."Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.
IMAGES: Top Viewer Flood Photos Top Images IMAGES: Fay Floods Hospital; Diverts Patients IMAGES: Canoes - Airboats Used To Flee Floods Tiffany Monk, 16, stood outside her Melbourne trailer during Tropical Storm Fay on Thursday and noticed floodwaters slowly overtaking her community on Eau Gallie Boulevard."There were people trapped in their home," Monk said. "Water was rising and there was no way out. (There were) people with oxygen tanks and wheelchairs and there was no way out. They needed help."Monk snapped photos of Groveland Mobile Home Park and then sent e-mails."You really have to see this," she said in e-mails she sent along with photos of tires floating by in her road. "We are trapped in. Literally, there is no way out.""Finally, I e-mailed the radio station 107.1 and I was like, 'Nobody seems to be coming in here to help us,'" Monk said. "We need help and we are trapped in. And then 20 minutes after that, news people started showing up here."Emergency personnel realized the severity of the situation and sent large trucks to pull out the elderly and disabled people who had a few feet of standing water inside their trailers.Many were taken to the shelter at Sherwood Elementary School in Melbourne. Police then took some people back into their homes to save personal items."I was just trying to help out the best I could," Monk said. "I've learned that if you actually take action then someone might listen to you.""She was worried about the elderly down there and nobody was doing anything," Monk's mother, Connie said. "So, she decided to get on the computer and see what I can get done."Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.
Previous Stories:
- August 21, 2008: Raw Sewage-Filled Flood Waters Prompt Fay Health Warnings
- August 21, 2008: Expert: Fay To Bring Mosquito Outbreak
- August 21, 2008: Bush Declares State Of Emergency In Fla.
- August 21, 2008: City's Fay Damage To Top $10 Million; Crist Tours Flooded Florida
- August 21, 2008: Crist Tours Flooded Homes; Community Under Chest-High Water
- August 21, 2008: Flooding Closes Busy Cental Fla. Ramp
- August 21, 2008: Canoes, Airboats Used To Flee Flooded Neighborhoods
- August 21, 2008: Zig-Zagging Fay Path Includes Fourth Fla. Landfall; More Record-Breaking Rain
- August 21, 2008: Fay Dumps Record-Breaking Rain; Flood Victims Warned Of Alligator Swimming In Streets
- August 21, 2008: Fay Path Shows Storm Moving Across Fla.
- August 20, 2008: Fay Becoming 'Catastrophic' Flood Event; 30 Inches Of Rain Expected
- August 20, 2008: Curfew Issued For Flooded Satellite Beach
- August 20, 2008: Fay No Longer Predicted To Strengthen Before Third Fla. Landfall
- August 20, 2008: Fay Dumps Record-Breaking Rain; Flood Victims Warned Of Alligator Swimming In Streets
- August 20, 2008: Looters Prey On Fay Victims, Police Say
- August 20, 2008: Tolls Reinstated On Central Fla. Roads
- August 19, 2008: Fay-Spawned Tornado Injures 2 People, Damages 54 Homes
- August 19, 2008: Alligator Spotted Walking Street Near Fay-Spawned Tornado Touchdown
- August 19, 2008: Fay Surprises, Intensifies Over Florida
- August 19, 2008: Storm Closes Central Fla. Schools
- August 19, 2008: Fay Could Dump Rain For Days; Chance Of Strengthening Exists
- August 19, 2008: T.S. Fay Slows Down On Path Through Florida; Dumps Heavy Rain
- August 19, 2008: Fay Does Not Intensify Before Landfall; Storm Moving East
- August 19, 2008: Central Fla. Shelters Open For T.S. Fay
- August 19, 2008: Kite Surfer Dragged Through Streets, Into Building By T.S. Fay Waterspout
- August 19, 2008: Sandbags Offered In Orlando, Daytona
- August 19, 2008: 'Alarming' Price-Gouging Complaints Before Fay Include Flashlight Batteries
- August 18, 2008: Path Shows Fay No Longer Cat. 1 Storm At Landfall; Aims For Orlando
- August 18, 2008: Path Shows T.S. Fay Passing Through Orlando; Landfall As Cat. 1
- August 18, 2008: Path Pushes Fay Over Orlando
- August 18, 2008: Current Trends Move Fay Path East
- August 18, 2008: T.S. Fay's New Path Jogs East; Aims For Landfall Near Tampa As Cat. 1
- August 16, 2008: Path Puts Tropical Storm-Force Winds In Orange County Next Week
- August 16, 2008: Path Moves Fay Through Central Fla. As Weak Hurricane Or Tropical Storm
- August 16, 2008: Crist Declares State Of Emergency
- August 16, 2008: New Path Puts Category 1 Hurricane On Top Of Florida Early Next Week
- August 15, 2008: Tropical Storm Fay Targets Florida
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