KENEDY COUNTY, Texas — As 3 News continues to monitor areas across the Coastal Bend and their aftermath from Hurricane Hanna, residents continue to pick up the pieces.
"We didn't think it was going to be this bad,"community member Janice Dunn Bowen said.
On Sunday, Bowen along with many neighbors were out in their yards cleaning up tree limbs and figuring out how to move forward with their destroyed piers.
"You don't know what to expect until you actually see it. Pictures don't quite show everything," neighbor Sheryl Theriot said.
Both Theriot and Bowen said they were caught by surprise when they saw how strong Hurricane Hanna was.
"We grew up here, we're from here so typically a tropical storm or category one is a lot of rain; winds but mostly rain," said Bowen. "It usually doesn't take out every pier on the beach. The winds were much worse, the water came up and the tides were much worse than we expected it to be."
Some residents considered whether or not they should begin repairs, because hurricane season just began.
"It actually is very sad and very heartbreaking, it's really sad that so many people lost what they built and worked for, for so long," said Bowen.
She said, even though Baffin Bay was on day one of picking up the pieces, she knew her community would stand together to help each other throughout the journey.
"It's a small town. When everybody gets married, everybody's there. When everyone has a problem, everyone's there. So everybody will pull together and help fix this too," said Bowen.
More from 3News on KIIITV.com:
- Kleberg County Judge calls for voluntary evacuation of 4 areas, orders closure of County Gulf Beaches
- Tropical Storm Hanna continues to strengthen, landfall expected to be near Baffin Bay early Saturday afternoon | UPDATE: July 24, 10AM
- CHRISTUS Spohn Health System prepares for Tropical Storm Hanna
- CCRTA cancels bus routes Saturday due to Tropical Storm Hanna