CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Heavy rain late Tuesday and early Wednesday caused major flooding in some parts of the region. Firefighters even had to pull people out of submerged cars and evacuate some from their homes.

Now many east Charlotte residents are cleaning up since what the receding water left behind. Debris remains on their lawns and floors.

Dolphin Lane resident Bridgete Belton said her carpet is squishing like a sponge.

"The water was at the foot of the last step," she said, looking at the stairs inside her house. "It was coming up real fast."

Once nearby Briar Creek overflowed, most of Belton's neighborhood quickly flooded. A debris line halfway up the yard of one home shows how high the water came on one side of the street – the lower side was entirely under water.

Things got so bad for the family in one home that they needed help getting out.

"My mom, she called 911 and told them she needed help because she doesn't know how to swim, so she was very scared for my 2-month-old little brother," said young Jeremy Davis.

Davis said the water around his house was so high and so powerful that it was scary.

"We had another refrigerator right there that fell over and a little freezer box over there," he said.

Doris Beasley, another Dolphin Lane resident, said the water crept into her car and now she's worried the vehicle is ruined. She couldn't start it for most of the morning, and dirty flood water is still inside.

"The water was above my tires. There were no lawns (across the street) at all. The current going down the street was phenomenal," she said.

Insurance adjusters are already out in the neighborhood assessing the damage for those who are covered. Some cars have already been declared a total loss.