'It Deteriorated So Rapidly'

There's a big difference between driving a Humvee versus a Saturn in a hurricane, Patch Correspondent Keith Heffintrayer said on Sunday.

And he would know.

Heffintrayer documented Hurricane Floyd in 1999 while he was in the U.S. Army and helped with search and rescue operations along the country's southeastern coast. 

On Saturday, he used his storm training and experience to video record Hurricane Irene while she pounded Montgomery County. 

"People were hydroplaning ... Everywhere was just flooded," he said and described the difficulty of fighting rushing water even while driving uphill.

Heffintrayer started in Lansdale and covered 250 miles through municipalities including Norristown and Perkiomen Valley. 

By 9 p.m. Saturday, large tree branches were tossed over many areas, he said.

"It was bad," he said. "It deteriorated so rapidly."

The rapid response from emergency workers including firefighters, EMTs and police across the county was impressive, he said and added he had five police scanners in his car while he drove through the county.

"The radios were just nonstop from (8 p.m.) on," he said. 

If a future hurricane makes its way to Montgomery County, people should heed storm warnings and find safe shelter, Heffintrayer said.

Indeed - the number of calls during the storm for water rescue situations across the county was staggering.

The emergency workers who responded to the calls put their lives on the line to help others, Heffintrayer said. 

"If it ever happens again, people need to take it seriously and stay home," he said.

Read what local residents said while Hurricane Irene pounded Montgomery County: