GRANITE CITY, Ill. — Dozens of homes and buildings were damaged during Monday's flash flood in Granite City.
That left some families like the Vinsons scrambling to find replacement school supplies and clothes after theirs were destroyed by water.
As water levels recede, more problems are rising for families in Granite City.
"You kind of feel a little hopeless you know?" said Maria Vinson.
Hopeless, because everything Maria Vinson worked for is ruined.
"The kids' birthdays are coming up in the next 3 to 8 weeks, all three of their birthdays, so I'm really upset about all that stuff," added Vinson.
Stuff her friends are now helping try to save, like her kids' clothes and baby pictures.
"Never seen my husband cry since we've been together in 2011 and it's always bothered me and I saw him cry yesterday and it just tore my heart apart," added Vinson.
But even with everything that went wrong on Monday, there was one moment of happiness when Maria saw her two kids riding down the street in a boat with their father.
"That was literally the only thing to make me smile I'm like this is going to be a memory for them and they're going to remember smiling and being on the boat with dad," said Vinson.
Maria doesn't have flood insurance, but she does have a complaint in with the city to see if the sewer system and drainage ditches are to blame.
"It would be much more uplifting to let my children know that we will be able to pull out of this if we had some insurance money or something to know that eventually everything will be okay but we really don't have any assurance," added Vinson.
Just like many others who dealt with Monday's flood.
"We've never seen anything like this so I hope that everyone will be willing to help their neighbors and that the city will take a little ownership in all of this," added Vinson.
If you would like to help with the damages to the Vinson's home click here.
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