A Texas family of 9 escaped flooding in Hunt by carving out a hole near their ceiling. Credit :

Gofundme (2)

• A Texas family of nine escaped flood waters in their home by using lobster buoys and a pocket knife to create a hole near the ceiling
• Penny Deupree’s adult son Tad Deupree said in a GoFundMe that the extended relatives had gathered to celebrate the Fourth of July
• Photos show broken furniture strewn about the home’s interior, which is covered in debris

As flooding from the nearby Guadalupe River poured into their home, a Texas family of nine relied on lobster buoys and a pocketknife to cut open a hole in a loft near the top of their house in Hunt.

“By the time I realized how much rain it was,” Penny Deupree, 83, told CBS affiliate KENS 5. “It was already in my house. But I had eight people, two babies and two dogs. It just went south from there.”

Much of the house itself was destroyed, but everyone inside the home survived.

 “We were saved by God,” Penny told the station. “That simple and easy.”

Her adult son, Tad Deupree, said in a GoFundMe that the extended relatives had gathered to celebrate the Fourth of July.

“In addition to losing her home of over 20 years, which she had built with my late father, Tom “Pops” Deupree, she has lost her car, irreplaceable family heirlooms, and countless photo scrapbooks,” Tad wrote of his mother. “If you know Penny, then you know how she cherished crafting and preserving memories with her scrapbooks.”

Penny Deupree’s home in Hunt, Texas, was overtaken by flood waters, but everyone inside survived. Gofundme

Photos show broken furniture strewn about the home’s interior, which is covered in debris.

 “They got the babies out first and mommas together,” Penny told KENS 5. “And when it was my turn, I had a little trouble fitting in this extremely small hole. But one boy pulled and one boy pushed so I was able to get out.”

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Her daughter, Keri Wilt, told CNN her great, great-grandmother is Frances Hodgson Burnett, author of The Secret Garden and A Little Princess. Despite serious damage to the home, a portrait of the esteemed writer remained affixed to the wall. Moving forward, they’re counting their blessings where they can.

“We have nine lives. We have everybody’s safe, everybody’s healthy, barely a scratch on anybody,” she told CNN.

To learn how to help support the victims and recovery efforts from the Texas floods, click here.