Prairieville, Louisiana (CNN) Tom Kelly of Prairieville, Louisiana, has one wish for Monday: To wake up in his own bed and put his feet on dry ground.

As he sat on his neighbor's porch Sunday afternoon, watching floodwater from Bayou Manchac creep above his patio, he knew it was unlikely.

"It's epic," Kelly said of historic flooding that swept across southeastern Louisiana over the weekend. "It's as high as I've ever seen it."

Shoes, children's toys and household items floated through knee-deep water outside his home.

With their homes largely intact they know they're the lucky ones.

"We're praying it stops where it is," said Kelly's neighbor, Jenny Ragland, whose home on a ridge was spared similar damage.

Flooding in Louisiana over the weekend forced tens of thousands of people from their homes, including more than 7,000 who had to be rescued, and left at least three dead, Gov. John Bel Edwards said at a news conference Sunday.

Police later confirmed that a woman's body had been retrieved from inside a flooded vehicle at North Hampton, raising the death toll to four.

According to witnesses, the woman was seen Saturday night attempting to turn around in high water when her vehicle was swept away, the East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office said. The woman's name will be released after her family has been informed.

Though the storms that caused the flooding had largely moved on by Sunday afternoon, flood warnings remained in effect around Livingston Parish. Rivers such as the Comite near East Baton Rouge and the Tickfaw near Livingston were expected to keep rising through Monday morning, causing more backwater flooding from rivers and bayous like the surge that impacted Prairieville.

Bayou Manchac resident Toni Denova.

Kelly and others planned to spend the night in Ragland's home. Beyond that, they're not sure what they'll do.

Another neighbor, Brad Jacobs, hopped in a canoe and paddled across the road to his home to grab fresh clothes. Ankle-deep water filled his home; he hopes an insurance payout will help replace the floors.

Resident Toni Denova just bought new furniture for her home but that's not what worried her. All she wanted was to preserve her family photographs against the rising floodwater.

"I have a box full of pictures in my garage that I hope get saved. That's all I really care about," Denova told CNN.

'It's only going to get worse

More than 24 inches of rain have fallen since Wednesday in Livingston, near Baton Rouge, making the disaster an extremely rare weather event, according to the National Weather Service. The statistical chance of such flooding occurring in any given year is 1%, the weather service said.

On Sunday night, President Obama granted Edward's request for emergency declaration to assist in response and recovery efforts. So far, the governor has deployed the Louisiana National Guard, which mobilized 1,700 soldiers to assist in search and rescue. Military police are assisting local law enforcement with security.

Private citizens also contributed to search and rescue efforts.

On Sunday in the town of Galvez-Lake near the Amite River, a frantic Christy Bourgeois and her husband Tom prepared a fan boat to assist a nearby flooded home.

"The last I heard my sister was there and it was on fire," she said.

Nearby, victims were salvaging toys, clothes and other belongings from their flooded homes. Down Highway 431, desperate families gathered at a gas station, pickup trucks loaded with belongings, waiting for water in their homes to recede.

Not far away, Jeremy Best said he and Henri Dufrane brought their small boat from nearby Wallace to help people escape their flooded houses.

Best said the water is still rising.

"It's coming up fast, man," said Best, who was wearing little more than shorts and a pair of boat shoes. "And it's only going to get worse."

Elsewhere, a rescue caught on video showed three men in a boat pulling a woman out of her submerged car as it filled with water. They even managed to save her dog.

JUST WATCHED Louisiana flooding sweeps away man's home Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Louisiana flooding sweeps away man's home 01:12

Communities band together

The dead include an unidentified 30-year-old woman whose body was recovered Saturday afternoon in St. Helena Parish, police said. She was traveling with her husband and mother when their vehicle was swept away by the flood. Her mother and husband were rescued.

Another victim, Samuel Muse, 54, of Greensburg, died Friday after he tried to drive through high water and floodwaters swept his vehicle off the road, CNN affiliate WAFB reported

Also Friday, a 68-year-old man drowned when he slipped and fell in flood waters in East Baton Rouge Parish.

Ray Cutrer told CNN that the flood seemed to come out of nowhere. His daughter, who lived next door, thought they might get a bit of water in the house but didn't fear a deluge.

"Our guard was down," he said. "And then it was a matter of just watching the water continually rise."

Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Baron Leblanc, left, and George Snyder move a refrigerator out of George's flooded home in St. Amant on Thursday, August 18. More than 30,000 people have been rescued in southern Louisiana after heavy rains caused flooding. "This is a major disaster," Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards has said. Hide Caption 1 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says A Virgin Mary statue is barely visible in front of a flooded home in St. Amant on August 18. Hide Caption 2 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Flooding affects a chicken coop in Sorrento on August 17. Hide Caption 3 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Kade Lewis helps gut his grandparents' home in Walker on Wednesday, August 17, after flooding. Hide Caption 4 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Caskets float in floodwaters near a cemetery in Gonzales on August 17. Hide Caption 5 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says A man talks on his phone while helping salvage items from a house in Denham Springs on August 17. Hide Caption 6 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Gary Schexnayder stands in a flooded street in Sorrento as an early morning fog blankets the area August 17. Hide Caption 7 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says David Key looks outside his flooded home in Prairieville on Tuesday, August 16. Hide Caption 8 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Raymond Lieteau waits for help to move a refrigerator as his friend Melissa Lockhart helps clean up the living room in his flood-damaged home in Baton Rouge on August 16. Lieteau had more than 5 feet of water in his home. Hide Caption 9 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Danny and Alys Messenger canoe away from their flooded home in Prairieville on August 16. Hide Caption 10 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says A pickup truck is partially submerged in Port Vincent, Louisiana, on August 16. Hide Caption 11 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Cattle are driven through a flooded road in Sorrento as they are herded to trucks on August 16. Hide Caption 12 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says People sort through water-damaged products outside Jasmine's Beauty Supply in Baton Rouge on August 16. Hide Caption 13 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says A man navigates a boat of rescued goats past a partially submerged car in Gonzales on August 16. Hide Caption 14 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Noel Michael holds up a cell-phone photo of her flooded home in Livingston, Louisiana, on Monday, August 15. Hide Caption 15 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Ann Chapman, from the Louisiana State Animal Response Team, carries a dog she helped rescue in Baton Rouge on August 15. Hide Caption 16 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Eli Turnage hands out water to people waiting in line at Carter's Supermarket in Livingston on August 15. Hide Caption 17 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says A boy in Baton Rouge rides his bike inside the flood-damaged Life Tabernacle Church on August 15. Hide Caption 18 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Ryan Evans makes his way through Baton Rouge on August 15. Hide Caption 19 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Robert Enfinger and his wife, Michelle, spend the night in a church that had been turned into an evacuation shelter in Walker. Hide Caption 20 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Tracy Thornton walks to his house through a flooded neighborhood in Baton Rouge on August 15. Hide Caption 21 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Floodwaters surround prefabricated houses in Denham Springs on August 15. Hide Caption 22 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Evacuees spend time together at the church shelter in Walker on August 15. Hide Caption 23 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says An American flag hangs in floodwaters in Walker on August 15. Hide Caption 24 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Danielle Blount and her 3-month-old baby, Ember, wait to be rescued by the Louisiana Army National Guard near Walker on Sunday, August 14. Hide Caption 25 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Members of the Louisiana Army National Guard help people near Walker on August 14. Hide Caption 26 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Youngsville police Chief Rickey Boudreaux takes a break from helping flood victims to view the damage to his own home on August 14. Hide Caption 27 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Jennifer Bernard and her dog, Shelby, travel by kayak down the flooded streets of Youngsville on August 14. Hide Caption 28 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Floodwaters inundate a street in Youngsville on August 14. Hide Caption 29 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says A girl takes her horse out on a dry road near Walker on August 14. Hide Caption 30 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Emergency personnel rescue flood victims near Walker on August 14. Hide Caption 31 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Those displaced by the flooding wait to board National Guard trucks at a Denham Springs church on August 14. Hide Caption 32 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Residents evacuate Hammond, Louisiana, with food in ice chests on Saturday, August 13. Hide Caption 33 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Floodwaters overwhelm businesses in Hammond on August 13. Hide Caption 34 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Jeff Robinson lowers a ladder from a National Guard truck as his wife wades through floodwaters near their home in Baptist, Louisiana, on August 13. Hide Caption 35 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says An aerial view of flood-damaged homes in Hammond on August 13. Hide Caption 36 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Tammie Wise holds her dog, Mikey, after Jeffrey Lesage helped rescue them in Central, Louisiana, on August 13. Hide Caption 37 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says A resident wades through floodwaters at apartments near Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. Hide Caption 38 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says A firefighter brings luggage to hotel guests during an evacuation of the Fairfield Inn in Lafayette, Louisiana, on August 13. Hide Caption 39 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says People ride an all-terrain vehicle through a flooded neighborhood in Carencro, Louisiana, on August 13. Hide Caption 40 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says The Tangipahoa River overflows near the towns of Amite, Independence, Tickfaw and Robert on August 13. Hide Caption 41 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Officials close down an exit off Interstate 55 south in Independence as floodwaters creep closer to the highway on August 13. Hide Caption 42 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Jeremy and Chelsea LeMieux paddle through floodwaters in Carencro on August 13. Hide Caption 43 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Rescue personnel and civilians team up to pull people from their homes along the Tangipahoa River on August 13. Hide Caption 44 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says Cattle huddle together in floodwaters near Hammond on August 13. Hide Caption 45 of 46 Photos: Louisiana flooding is 'major disaster,' governor says A firefighter helps a resident in Baton Rouge on Friday, August 12. Hide Caption 46 of 46

By midnight Friday they were storing furniture and valuables in the attic and carrying what they could over the back property line as water filled the road.

When they returned on Saturday, Cutrer's house had escaped damage but his daughter's was devastated. She and her husband will live with him and his wife until repairs are done, he said.

Another washed-out neighbor is staying with Cutrer's brother.

He made a promise to help others when he found his house safe, he said.

"I said, 'Lord, I will be here to help the ones who did,' and I am. I will be right here. We'll help them every way that we can," he said. "That is the way we can give back to this community."