MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) — More than a dozen unhoused people have made their homes under a bridge next to the Kinnikinnic River.

After historic flooding, outreach volunteers tell us many people there lost everything, and some lost their lives.

"In all the years that I've been down here, I've never seen nothing like that. Never," said Chris Lovejoy, who has lived under the bridge near 1st Street and South Chase Avenue in Bay View for nearly five years.

He tells us he lost everything he had there on Aug. 9 to flooding rains.

"I gave up on humanity that day, because I thought nobody came down here to see if we we're okay," Lovejoy said.

He is thankful that Street Angels came a couple days later, giving him a new tent and sleeping bag.

"They keep everything where they are, so that's vital documents, birth certificates, IDs, blankets, clothing, food," said Shelly Sarasin, Co-Executive Director of Street Angels. "Anything that they had just washed away in a matter of seconds."

After seeing the devastation last week, Sarasin is now trying to find those missing from the camp.

"I was able to confirm on Friday that one of our friends for sure did not make it," she said. "People did die. They may not have been in houses like you or I, but they mattered."

Sarah Young, Vice President of Mr. Bob's Under the Bridge, also heard people from the encampment were lost.

"We know that one of our friends was trying to - from the bank - grab our friends as they were getting washed away," Young explained.

She was told two people died in the floods, and at least three are unaccounted for.

"They're the reason we're out there every week. We call them our friends because they are our friends," she said.

Both organizations are in contact with the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office, while continuing to serve those impacted.

"Our unsheltered neighbors are our neighbors. They're not expendable," Sarasin said. "We're going to keep looking for our friends, keep hoping for the best, and continue to be out there."

Sarasin said they're serving 250 unhoused people throughout Milwaukee, and most of them lost items during flooding.

While outreach groups are always in need of donations, they tell us it's especially crucial right now. Tents, mens clothing and underwear are on top of the list.

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