PRINCEVILLE — Water swallowed their tiny town. Now, for the first time since Hurricane Floyd, the people of Princeville are returning home.

Residents fled this Edgecombe County town because of rising flood water. Two weeks later, they are able to see firsthand what is left of their homes.

Most had heard the worst and expected it. Nearly every building in town is destroyed. The damage is so bad residents cannot stay overnight.

Vananza Brown was only able to save a few pieces of clothing on her first trip back to her home. The rest of her house is a total loss.

"Everything is turned over. The floors have buckled, the walls have mildew, the walls have split," she says.

Laveda Holliman spent the day trying to find her way through her home. Nothing inside was spared. Every open door showed more destruction.

The homes in Princeville are not the only things that need to be rebuilt. Water and sewer lines need weeks of work.

Police are heavily enforcing Princeville's borders. Only residents and their guests are allowed to enter the town.