“I can’t believe we’re still here”: San Angelo family shares terrifying escape from July 4 flood

SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage) — As floodwaters surged through neighborhoods on July 4, one San Angelo family endured a terrifying fight to survive, clinging to each other, their pets, and hope in the darkness.

“We had to pry this door open. It would not open,” said Iris Bautista, who survived the flood with her family. “We had to pry it open, and then the water just went in and just squished in. It was a total nightmare. And at that point, you know, it’s dark, it’s very pitch dark, and you’re thinking, ‘Oh, shoot. Now the lights are flickering, and now you can’t see.”

Heavy rainfall inundated the region over 24 hours, triggering flash floods that caught many residents off guard.

“Here we can guesstimate we got about 15.3 inches of rain over the last 24 hours,” said Jake Gilson, KLST morning meteorologist, in his forecast the morning of July 4. “And a little bit further north in the southern half of Coke County.”

For the Bautistas, who live on the 5400 block of E 37th Street in north San Angelo, the storm struck just before dawn. What began as a routine moment—her husband, David Bautista, taking their dogs outside—quickly turned into chaos.

“I said David, take the dogs out to go pee. ‘Babe, I can’t,’ he goes. I was like, ‘Why?’ And I said, ‘Look at my clothes. Look at my knees,’” she recalled. “I felt the water, and David just said, ‘Let’s go. Let’s get up.’ And I said, like, ‘Jonathan, Jonathan, let’s get the dogs,’ you know, my nephew. And he said, ‘I’m gonna open the door.’ And when he did, everything started rushing in.”

Bautista and her family grabbed what they could — including their pets — and left their home, where they would rendezvous at a nearby convenience store.

“I followed him all the way to Stripes, and that’s my mindset: You’ve got to go back. The chickens are there. They don’t know it’s flooding,” she said.

In a desperate attempt to save them, she and her family tossed the chickens onto the roof. “We lost three chickens in the process. They died,” she said.

She tied her jacket around her puppy to keep from losing her in the current.

“I tied my jacket really tight. That way I won’t be able to, like, let go of her or her, you know, vice versa,” she said. “David goes, ‘We gotta go. We gotta make it to Andrew. We gotta make it.’”

Even as trucks moved through the streets in a rush, the floodwaters pushed harder.

“Everybody was coming through with their trucks, which I understand — they were on panic mode. But the wave, it just went, you know, just kept going and going,” she said. “And I could just feel my body just, you know, just going in and going in. And I was like, ‘I can’t do this. I cannot do this.”

After the flood, the family returned to find their vehicle damaged by rushing water and with several belongings stolen from inside the car.

“When we got the car, the vehicle back, I was really upset, because they had just tried to take everything out and take whatever. It’s not necessary to do that,” she said. “If you wanted it, asked for it, I would have probably said, take it. It is not even worth looting.”

Through the loss and fear, Bautista said her gratitude remains.

“If you wanted it, asked for it, I would have probably said, ‘Take it.’ It is not even worth looting. If you ask, I’m sure everybody here would feel the same way,” she said. “I can’t believe it. I’m still here, and I can’t believe David’s still here. My nephew’s still here, and it’s a big blessing, yeah — to actually put my feet on the ground and walk.”

A family friend has set up a GoFundMe to support the Bautista family. For those looking to help others affected by the flood, donations can also be made through the San Angelo Area Foundation.