As Texas recovers from catastrophic flash floods that struck over the weekend, heartbreaking accounts of survivors and tales of unimaginable heroism are emerging, some of which end in heartbreak and loss.

For many residents, the relentless overnight rain marked the beginning of a Nightmare. “It’s indescribable,” said Tonya Fucci, who was visiting her grandmother when her home village was suddenly flooded by rising waters. She recalled, “I heard sounds like explosions… Later I realized it was trees collapsing into the river. I’m still in shock. I saw furniture, trailers; everything being swept away by a relentless current.”

Others fought for their lives in real time. “We had to swim to survive,” brothers Pierce and Barfin Boyd told The Guardian, after escaping a flooded summer camp with their young children in tow. Irene Burgess, who was with her 19-year-old son, attributed their rescue to their physical connection: “We hugged. That’s what kept me alive as we went under.”

But perhaps no story has struck a chord as deeply as that of Julian Ryan, a husband and father whose final act, breaking a window to save his family, cost him his life.

As floodwaters flooded their mobile home, Ryan realized escape was impossible unless he broke the glass wall. “He punched the window out to get us out,” his fiancee told US media. “But he cut his arm badly in the process. He severed an artery; he almost tore it out.”

Christina Wilson, Ryan’s fiancee and mother of his children, said they put the children on the mattress because it was still buoyant. Shortly after, the water pressure that flooded the RV destroyed it, giving the family time to get out and find safety. Despite repeated calls to 911, help didn't arrive in time. Ryan managed one last heartbreaking goodbye: "I'm sorry. I'm not going to make it. I love you." His body was found hours later, KHOU 11 reported.

After saving his mother, his fiancée, and his two children, ages 6 and 13 months, Julian died at age 27 “like a true hero,” according to a GoFundMe request for his funeral.

So far, his family has received more than $80,000 in donations for his burial.

Shock. Grief. Disbelief. These emotions echo in each account as the magnitude of the disaster sinks in. “You just want them to find the missing,” Fucci said, “but deep down, you know it’s not going to end well. No one can survive that.”

At last count, at least 104 people, including several children, have died in the floods. Among the dozens still missing are many girls who were staying at the now-destroyed summer camp, where hopes for survival diminish with each passing hour.