Robert Simmons Jr. was recently observing the floodwater in his neighborhood (New Bern) caused by hurricane Florence which literally turned the streets of the small town into canals. Some spots were waist deep and some were even deeper. Simmons spent his whole life there and was heartbroken by the scenes he saw.

He says that Florence is the worst hurricane he’s seen, and he’s seen them all. While talking to a news crew, a kitten was peering slowly through the top of his rain jacket. Simmons has taken the kitty with him on the boat and it meowed the whole way through. Both were wet and tired and the crew took pictures right away. It goes without saying they went viral immediately.

As the hurricane hurled through North Carolina, Simmons’ story was not the only one of that kind. Thousands of people lost their whole lives in the floods.

Meet Robert Simmons. Was stuck in his house since last night, when floodwaters began to rise in New Bern. A boat came and rescued him just now. He was sad to leave his father but left with his kitten hugging his neck. Cat’s name: Survivor, Simmons said. #HurricaneFlorence2018 pic.twitter.com/vRR3lANDJe

— Andrew Carter (@_andrewcarter) September 14, 2018

The kitten climbed out of the jacket on the man’s back and stood up on his shoulder. It looked like they knew each other their whole life. Simmons told the crew he feeds the kitty and they just clicked at first sight. The kitty was separated from his momma and it wasn’t the first separation that day. Simmons gave it a fitting name – Survivor. There were boats arriving and departing Washington Street all day long, watching them haul his neighbors.

Luckily, Simmons’ home wasn’t flooded. The water stopped outside his front door, but inside everything was dry. On the streets, however, it was a whole different story. It was like a river swallowed everything. There was no way in or out – just water. Simmons begged for his father to leave, but the man wouldn’t bulge.

Hurricane Florence hit that part of the town pretty hard. New Bern was pretty flooded, strainding people inside their homes and drowning many. Simmons say that he has food and water, so he was prepared. The only thing he wasn’t prepared was the feeling of being trapped – that’s the nature of floods.

Read these characteristics which almost all cat lovers have in common:

INTROVERTED AND SENSITIVE

It’s the nature of cats that they are not friends with everybody, and the same trait can be seen in their owners too. Usually, they live alone and are happy with their independent lifestyle. They are introverts but are comfortable hanging around with other people. However, they would need some me-time to relax and recharge.

CAT LOVERS LEAN TO LEFT

It has been observed that people with liberal political leanings prefer cats over dogs. You might be a liberal dog lover or a conservative cat owner; if you’re a liberal, you love cats and vice versa.

CAT OWNERS ARE OPEN-MINDED

Five traits – conscientiousness, neuroticism, extraversion, agreeableness, and openness are often seen in most cat lovers. As compared to dog owners, people who have cats as pets are more open and therefore, have greater artistic creativity.

ATTENTION SEEKERS

Just like their pets, cat lovers seek attention from people around them. They like to be the centre of all conversations. At times, cat owners rely on their pets for emotional support.

THEY RESPECT CATS MORE THAN ANYONE

Cat people respect cats more than humans, in general. The saddest sight for a cat lover is to see the animal on the streets without a home. Cat lovers are often seen making a special effort to rescue or rehabilitate homeless cats.