When residents left their homes, few expected to be gone long, yet six weeks passed before the last neighborhoods reopened and every resident could assess the extent of the damage. In the meantime, news media told a grim story and painful reality set in; many people had no home to return to. The unimagined became reality. Those first weeks after the flood were desperate times. Running water didn't return for 13 days, and it took 23 days for drinkable water to flow again. About 12,000 homes remained without power and many without natural gas, leaving residents cold and in the dark. Many children were sent to stay with family or friends in "civilization". An exhausted population began the cleanup process.