CLEMENTS, Md. — They say when it rains it pours, and for Audrey Lockhart, that couldn't have been more true than on Aug. 4. Tropical Storm Isaias hit St. Mary's County hard that day, and single mom Audrey Lockhart's home was completely flooded -- in the middle of a pandemic that forced her out of a job.
She said her house and the four rental properties on the lot, which pay for the mortgage, were practically destroyed by the water damage. Lockhart said some of the rental homes had two to three feet of water in them.
“We walked through the houses, and there was nothing but just muck," Lockhart said. "And, there was still a lot of water in the houses, and when I opened the doors, the water would just pour out. I've never seen anything like that before. It was wild.”
Lockhart said the water pouring out of Clements Creek into her yard hit four feet at one point -- they could swim in it.
For the past three weeks, she's been working to get rid of the damaged items and rebuild.
“As you’re throwing stuff away, you’re looking at baby pictures. One thing that really got me was sonogram pictures," she said. "Just everything that you think is safe and memories you want to hang onto and give to your children and be able to show them, it really gets to you."
But she's pushed ahead alone, for the most part. She said her boyfriend drives from Virginia to help on the weekends, and her mom has been looking after her three daughters, ages seven, eight and 11.
“When I sit down and I think about oh well I need to do this this this and this, it’s so overwhelming, I just start crying," Lockhart said. "So you just take it day by day, make a goal for that day."
Flood damage in Audrey Lockhart's St. Mary's County home
So far, Lockhart has re-carpeted the living room and one of the kids' rooms. But, she said her one child's room still has a hole in the floor and the kitchen has to be redone.
“It seems like everything kind of falls on me at once," she said.
Lockhart has been out of work since February. She was interviewing for an apprenticeship with the Iron Workers Union when the pandemic hit, and they were forced to shut down.
Thankfully, she said she has been receiving unemployment benefits. But this flood has destroyed her source of payment for her house, as the renters have had to move out for the time being.
She has also had to try to prepare her daughters to begin second, third, and sixth grades from home for their virtual semester starting Aug. 31.
“We’re trying to work really hard so I can get everything situated so when school starts, they’re ready and comfortable," Lockhart said. "It’s like oh my goodness! How am I going to do it?”
Her friend has set up a gofundme in the hopes of getting her some assistance.
“It’s easy to say thank you, but for them to understand how thankful I am, no one could ever imagine that," Lockhart said.
As she cherishes the memories saved, she's working quickly to give her kids a safe space to make new ones.