IMAGES: Residents in Madison, Ind. hard-hit by flooding

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Heavy rains overnight in Kentuckiana have led to flash flooding and several water rescues.

Parts of southern Indiana were hard hit by early morning storms Tuesday, with some areas receiving up to seven inches of rain.

Madison, Indiana experienced heavy flooding and mudslides near the historic downtown. Mayor Damon Welch was out before dawn surveying damage to homes and roadways.

Welch says a creek flooded streets near Indiana State Road 421, but the water had receded by 6 a.m. "I think everything's passable except for what we call Hanging Rock Hill, Highway 7," Welch said.

Residents on Walnut Street woke up to a muddy mess, and damage property. Cars and vehicles were flooded, and some vehicles were almost completely submerged.

Police Chief Dan Thurston tells WDRB this is the worst flooding he has seen in his career. He says they've had a lot of rain and there is nowhere for it to go. Police, fire and emergency management used boats to evacuate people near downtown Madison throughout the night.

About 60 people were affected by the flooding.

George Gauck was in the shower when he first noticed the water.

"Within minutes, it was all the way through the house, climbing up the walls," Gauck said. "We started trying to gather anything that we could. She gathered baby clothes and ... I went through and was gathering pictures and on my second round back was when I encountered the copperhead. going through the living room."

Down the street, Beverly Thornton was helpless as the water poured in.

"And it just come up in the floors, it came that quick," Thornton said.

Thornton says she doesn't have insurance and that her kids will have to help her with the cleanup.

"I got about a foot in my house," Thornton said. "A lot of the cars were destroyed down here. I've lived her 30-something years and it's never been in my house."

Basements all around Walnut street were flooded.

While Madison residents have a big cleanup ahead of them, they say material possessions can be replaced.

"Everybody was safe," Thornton said. "So thank God for that."