NILES —  When 8 feet of churning flood water rushed into the basement of Kelly Cullum’s home on Phoenix Street last month, Cullum was asleep until her home’s foundation cracked under the force.

“It sounded like an earthquake,” Cullum said.

With her dog Cocoa in tow, Cullum rushed from her home and escaped the rising waters in her truck.

“It was just gushing in,” Cullum said of her basement. “It was already high, but then it got really high.”

Temporarily displaced from her home, Cullum and her husband, Kenneth, were left with the daunting task of clearing the wreckage from their basement to begin to restore their home of 25 years.

Thanks to efforts coordinated by the city of Niles and partners with United Way of Southwest Michigan, Cullum and other flood victims did not have to face this chore alone.

On Friday and Saturday, about 100 volunteers were sent to help residents clear their homes and pick up flood debris scattered around the downtown. Donning rubber gloves, waders and face masks, volunteers were deployed to some of Niles’ hardest hit areas: Phoenix, Marmont, River and Parkway streets.

Throughout the day, volunteers carried soggy furniture, wrecked personal belongings and appliances to the curb, where the trash was loaded into a tractor bucket and hauled to a dumpster.

Niles Community Development Director Sanya Vitale said many residents were overwhelmed by the sheer volume of the cleanup and the number of volunteers who helped to ease that burden. And while residents likely still have much to do to restore many of their homes, the efforts helped them in their first step to recovery.

“The coordination with the city departments has been amazing,” Vitale said. “We have people from every single department with their boots on the ground.”

City officials including Mayor Nick Shelton, Police Chief Jim Millin, Niles Fire Chief Larry Lamb and City Administrator Ric Huff participated over the course of Friday and Saturday. Niles History Center Director Christina Arseneau and Assistant Director Mollie Kruck Watson also helped and shut down the Niles History Center Friday to help with the city’s efforts.

“I can’t imagine what they are going through,” Arseneau said. “This felt like the least we could do.”

The Niles Salvation Army also helped out Friday and Saturday by providing water, snacks and lunch to volunteers. For flood victims, the charity organization also distributed flood cleanup kits.

For Cullum, efforts from volunteers were greatly appreciated.

“We got everything out of the basement,” Cullum said. “Then volunteers came along and it was very helpful.”

Andrews University sent an email out to students asking for them to volunteer in Niles. Student Jackie Dohna was among those who volunteered. She said seeing how grateful residents were for the help was among the most rewarding part of the experience.

“Everybody was so thankful and receptive,” Dohna said.

Fellow Andrews student and volunteer Joanna Rivera said she felt called to help after driving by flooded homes and parks throughout her daily commute. For Rivera, the experience was also rewarding.

“I felt like I was helping our neighbors,” Rivera said. “With the flooding in general I was like, I need an opportunity to serve my neighbors. What can I do?”

About 20 Niles New Tech students and staff members also volunteered. They cleaned up trash scattered around the downtown and helped residents on Parkway Street clear out their homes.

While clearing debris might have taken untold hours for residents to take care of on their own, Vitale said with a “good-sized” crew, most homes could be cleared in 30 to 45 minutes.

“Without this help, I don’t know what we would have done,” Vitale said. “ … Nobody wants any glory. It is just our way of showing that we are here.”