PORTERVILLE, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – Parts of Porterville remained under an evacuation order Thursday, as floods from the Tule River continued. 

Some residents returned to their homes to see the damage for the first time, like in the area of Olive Avenue and Road 216 in Porterville, where homes are still surrounded by, or filled with water. 

People like Juan Ferrer, put on waders to reach their homes in waste deep water. 

“I said, all we needed, again, was what’s important. Which was special medication that my mom takes. I took the chance. It’s what you do for your family. You know, my mom is everything to us, she’s the center of our family,” said Ferrer. 

He told me in over 20 years on his property in Porterville, the water has never reached his home like it has in this storm. The ordeal left him shocked. 

“It just came to the middle of the property, and boom, within an hour it was just flooded,” he said. 

He and his family are without flood insurance and lost most of their belongings in the flood. Now they just have each other. 

“Everything’s floating, sofas are floating, yeah six feet of water, it’s almost all the way up to the top of the range. So yeah, I mean it’s pretty sad, but like I say you have to stay positive,” Ferrer said. 

On Rio Vista Avenue in the city, some families packed up to avoid a similar fate. 

Some filled entire moving trucks, packed with everything from furniture, clothing, appliances, and more. 

It all came even as the flow of the Tule River significantly decreased Thursday. 

“The sun’s out today, which gives everyone a little more sense of calm. But it doesn’t take away from the water flow that’s still gonna be coming off the mountains into the lake, and obviously through the waterways here at the Tule River,” said Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreaux. 

Sheriff Boudreaux said they plan to watch the next few days ahead closely, to make a determination on when they will be able to lift still active evacuation orders. 

The goal is to do that as soon as possible, but resident safety remains the number one priority.