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."
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