Houston flooding: Rising river water prompts high-water rescues in Humble
HUMBLE, Texas - In Humble, flood waters generally fall within Harris County's Voluntary Evacuation zone, which leaves residents surrounded by water with two choices: Get out or be prepared to sit and wait until the water recedes. By Friday morning, some had found Mother Nature made the decision for them.
On a quiet N. Houston Avenue, in Humble, the sound of flowing water and rain was broken by the roar of a Houston Fire Department high-water rescue team. They responded to this area along the banks of the West Fork of the San Jacinto River, where several people in an RV park were stranded.
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Jessica Jane among those who decided the water was high enough, "It's up to here, already, and it's very dangerous, so we figured we were going to bail out, now. We should have left, last night."
While rescuers were there, a man paddled his kayak across the water saying he's the RV park manager. He told firefighters that there were more people, facing a couple more days of rising water, who were persuaded to leave. "I told all the people at the place I manage, 'You can stay if you want, but I'm not going to make that decision for you," he says, "I can't be responsible for your well-being. Some of them decided they were going to stay, and now they've decided they're going to go."
As firefighters brought one last couple out of harm's way, the crew captain says their high-water truck had reached its limit. Any future rescues would need to be by boat.
"Get out, now. It's putting a lot of these guys at risk," says Sr. Captain Chris Kelley, "It'll only get riskier, the longer they stay, and it's going to make getting them out a lot riskier, as well."
By Friday morning, this one crew had already rescued 15 people. As the West Fork is expected to rise through late Saturday, they expect to be even busier.