Red Cross volunteers from Fort Myers deploys to South Carolina

FORT MYERS, Fla.- More volunteers from Southwest Florida just left to help flood victims in South Carolina. They’re traveling to some of the hardest hit areas where people lost everything.

The images of devastation in South Carolina are hard to look at, but through all of the heartache and loss, we are hearing stories of strangers helping strangers.

“You get very excited when you get there because you are going to be able to help people,” said Red Cross volunteer Michelle Porcello.

Porcello is going up the coast for her seventh deployment, but this one hits close to home, as she has family in Columbia, South Carolina.

“I have had some good experiences and some difficult ones, definitely some successful ones, each one is different,” said Porcello.

Jim Cheatham barely escaped his home Saturday as water came rushing in.

“If I had not come down, I would have been trapped,” said Cheatham.

On Thursday morning, he went back for the first time and was overwhelmed at the clean up ahead; then, a miracle.

“I got 15 guys, can empty it out in 30 minutes.”

A group of volunteers, complete strangers. showed up to help.  They have already cleared out more than 100 flood-ravaged homes.

“Yeah, I have no idea what this guy’s name is. It doesn’t matter. They’ve got to get help. They don’t know where to start.”

“I didn’t realize until this morning, I could have drowned.”

Nineteen people have died in both north and South Carolina from the flooding. Despite sunshine on Thursday, there is still danger. Rivers near the coast continue to rise.