JEFFERSON COUNTY (WVLT) – A group of East Tennesseans spent the last day of the Holiday weekend drying out after flash floods ripped through their homes.

Early Sunday morning, rain pounded a small area in the western part of Jefferson County. Emergency crews said a handful of homes ended up getting washed out, which prompted a half dozen water rescues.

The rain lasted four hours and disappeared not long after the sun began to rise.

"It sounded like a heavy downpour,” said Sammy Solomon of the New Market Volunteer Fire Department, “but it didn't last very long."

Most of the residents slept right through it, with some awaken in the morning to find a soaking surprise.

Laura Herbert of Strawberry Plains slept through most of it, only to be surprised when she woke up.

“There was water everywhere," said Laura Herbert of Strawberry Plains, whose house was flooded. “I've had water in my side yard before, and it's come up in my driveway, but never like this."

There were few clouds in the sky by the time many East Tennesseans were on their way to Sunday services, but in Strawberry Plains, there was at least two and a half inches of standing water.

"The ground was so hard it couldn’t go anywhere, so it just started flooding,” said Solomon.

Pride Lane was one of the hardest hit and many of its lawns were turned lakes.

The water level gradually dropped throughout the morning and into the afternoon, leaving behind a line grimy line to indicate how far it had risen at the peak of the storm.

"This spot here was covered with water that had flooded over,” said Juanita Harris, 79 who lives nearby on Old Dandridge Pike. She witnessed the flash flood spread so fast that her driveway was submerged minutes after the downpour began. Later on she was rescued by New Market VFD. "I couldn't tell where to step and I could see the water was going over the bridge. If I'd walked over the edge too far, I would've drowned."

New Market VFD rescued six residents and at one point had to rescue one of its own members. According to Solomon, fireman Jonathan Rogers was trying to rescue a dog when the flood’s fast moving current swept him away.

“It took him about two yards downstream,” he said. “I had to grab a hold of him to get him out."

Within an hour of Hebert’s washout, an army of help was on the way to cleanup.

“I really appreciate that I have such good friends and friendly," she said.

Firefighters also said that run-off from the rain collapsed the foundation of a home in Strawberry Plains.

As of Sunday evening, the Jefferson County EMA had not received any reports of storm related injuries. If your home was damaged in the flood, you can call them at (865) 397-7228.