Tropical Storm Cindy leaves Lake Charles without much damage

Some homeowners in Lake Charles, Louisiana say Tropical Storm Cindy left about a foot of water on their homes. But many are just breathing a sigh of relief saying it could've been worse.

Cindy shut down businesses for the day and had people running for shelter. The heavy rain also put several roads underwater.

Lake Charles resident James Rowe suddenly found himself caught in high water Wednesday night on the eve of the storm.

“The other hurricanes were a steady rain, but this one here was like ‘pow,’” Rowe said. “I didn’t expect this much.”

Rowe says several other cars stalled, and he made it to a parking lot before his car stopped running. 

“The water was to my hood,” he said. “I already pulled out grass and stuff from the water.”

However, after a quick jump from the FOX4 crew, Rowe was off and moving again.

Friday morning, Lake Charles resident Johnny Ray Moreno and his daughter Binky rode their gator vehicle around the neighborhood to access the damage.

“This one is mild compared to what I had,” the elder Moreno said. “This is just the beginning of hurricane season. We expect the worst."

But they made preparations for Cindy just in case.

“Groceries, gasoline, we moved a lot of stuff from underneath the house,” Binky Moreno said.

“Well we've got plenty of wine. We've got plenty of vodka,” a chuckling Johnny Ray Moreno added.

The National Weather Service is reporting the effects of Cindy should continue to diminish over the next day or so.

Many state and city offices that were closed Thursday plan to reopen Friday.