if you ve been involved with a flash flood event, there s no time. reporter: road and bridges weren t passable by car. those who reached higher ground were the lucky ones. there was no way i could get out. i lost everything i have, but we re alive. reporter: the chris family has been coming here for 25 years. this time they lost their dog and almost saw their son drown downstream. i have a 16-year-old that was floating down the river saying, mom and daddy, help me. all we had to do we couldn t do nothing. we had to watch him float down. thank god he lodged to a tree. but i got another compared to those babies screaming and hollering in the river. help me, help me. we couldn t reach them. reporter: rescue efforts are under way for 40 people still missing along the caddo and little missouri rivers. they ve got horses, helicopters, they ve got foot patrols, they ve got all-terrain vehicles. i mean, they re doing everything they know how to do. there s everybody working. re