International Harbor Foundation helps Harvey-affected residents

HOUSTON (FOX 26) - "It definitely looks different this time," said a team member who goes by "John." But the last time the team from International Harbor Foundation was here, it was a different a story.

"When we were doing rescues, we pulled 35 people out of this neighborhood," said "John." Directly where we were standing, it was belly button height. On the back side of the neighborhood, it was 12 feet at street level."

One of those people was Ken Jones. The single father of three tried to ride it out then sought help. The International Harbor Foundation team arrived and rescued Jones' family and now they are back home.

Did he recognize them?

"Not right away 'cause I had so much going on in my head at the time," said Jones.

Pictures taken that night show water up to the storm gutters.

Members of International Harbor Foundation can't show their faces because they all took part in military special operations. When they aren't doing this, the group is undercover combating human trafficking. The Houston -based nonprofit group has been helping people in small towns in the greater Houston and Beaumont areas during the post-Harvey recovery process.

"The small ones really need it," said foundation spokeswoman Jennifer Hagler. "They don't have the resources and stuff as Houston proper, so they really need the help."

Now that the water has retreated, the International Harbor Foundation members returned to see what the people they rescued need now to rebuild and help them deal with FEMA because, believe it or not, sometimes the toughest opponent for these former elite warriors can be government red tape.

"It's definitely sad to see what these people are going through, but Texas has really pulled together like I never would've imagined," said "John."

If you want to know more about the group, visit https://intlharbor.org/.