Robert Simmons Jr. and his kitten, Survivor, are rescued from floodwaters in New Bern, NC, after Hurricane Florence dumped several inches of rain in the area overnight, Sept. 14, 2018. Hundreds were rescued from eastern North Carolina in the wake of the slow-moving storm. Photo by Andrew Carter, The News & Observer
Robert Simmons Jr. and his kitten, Survivor, are rescued from floodwaters in New Bern, NC, after Hurricane Florence dumped several inches of rain in the area overnight, Sept. 14, 2018. Hundreds were rescued from eastern North Carolina in the wake of the slow-moving storm. (Photo: Andrew Carter/The News & Observer)

Survivor lives up to his name. The tiny kitten clung to the man who would prove to be his rescuer as Hurricane Florence took its toll on the Carolinas.

Robert Simmons Jr. sat on the back seat of a small vessel, looking at the what was once the streets of New Bern, now canals. He had lived there for all of his life. Nothing was recognizable.

“We done been through Bertha, Fran, Irene, Matthew,” he told reported Andrew Carter of the News Observer. “And this is the worst it’s ever been, in this part right here.”