A Staten Island mother whose two young children were swept away by floodwaters from hurricane Sandy told police she sought shelter at a stranger's house in the midst of the storm but was refused help.

Police found the bodies of Glenda Moore's two young children Connor, 4, and Brandon, 2, on Thursday about quarter of a mile from where she lost grip of them, according to CNN.

"She was holding onto them, and the waves just kept coming and crashing and they were under," the boys' aunt, who was not named, told the New York Daily News. "It went over their heads ... she had them in her arms, and a wave came and swept them out of her arms."

Moore was attempting to drive her children to a relative's home in Brooklyn after their home became flooded and lost power during the surge of the storm. However her Ford Explorer stalled in rising water, according to a police report, NBCNews noted.

Moore managed to free the boys from their car seats and clung to a tree for hours as she tried to shelter them in the midst of the strong winds and rain. Then she made her way to a nearby house and pleaded to be let inside with the kids, but the occupant refused to let them in, according to her account to police, reports CNN.

In desperation, Moore went to the back of the house and tried to break in but was unable to do so and the floodwaters took her children away, CNN reports.

The house's alleged occupant told CNN he didn't see a woman but a man outside his house and that the man didn't asked to be let in but instead asked him to come outside to help.

"What could I do to help him?" he asked. "I had a pair of shorts on with flip-flops."

Another report said Moore not only knocked on that house but on several doors seeking help during the height of the storm but no one was willing to help her, according to Moore's sister, NBCNews reports.

Staten Island was one of the worst hit bouroughs in New York City and so far it's death toll stands at 19.

Residents of the island are also pleading authorities for help as their homes have been flooded and have no power.