One month after devastating floods damaged many homes in the Southcrest neighborhood of San Diego, one flood victim tells NBC 7 his insurance funds are quickly running out.
“Watching everything you work for get picked up by water and float away is kind of terrifying,” Duncan MacLuan said. “You don't normally have to man up and pull your neighbors on the roof every day.”
San Diego's Historic Flooding, One Month Later
He hasn’t lived in his Southcrest home on Beta Street since.
Get top local stories in San Diego delivered to you every morning. Sign up for NBC San Diego's News Headlines newsletter.
“Going back there and seeing it all, and kind of remembering that you were here and went through this, the water was neck-deep outside,” MacLuan said. “It kind of messes with your head.”
Resources for San Diego flood victims:
He had a little flood coverage, and insurance is helping him pay for an Airbnb in Pacific Beach. But he doesn’t have a job or a car, and his funds are running out.
“Honestly, with having to pay for the rental and paying rent here, I'd say maybe another two months, give or take, before everything that insurance paid is gone,” MacLuan said. “That means no money for a new car, no money for down payment on a house, no money to get new items like back to nothing.”
The flood scattered his neighbors across the country, and even overseas, with family.
When one month stretches to a year and beyond, he hopes his community isn’t forgotten. He’ll remember his neighbors and the ways racing water carried them closer together.
“You might have a few friends here and there, but when it really hits the fan is when you find out what the community really is about,” he said. “Seeing all the neighbors breaking windows to get people out of the houses, like, ‘No, we're not going to let this happen.' That was really cool. It was it was scary but cool.”
FEMA announced assistance for storm survivors, and $42,500 is the household cap for grants.
