Waterlogged worker flees area in his truck
Jake Lewis, a 30-year-old railroad worker who was in Houston on business yesterday when he awoke to rapidly rising floodwaters, described to the Herald’s Antonio Planas the panic he felt when he realized how quickly the water levels were rising and his decision to leave the disaster area for the safety of his home in New Braunfels, Texas.
“I put my feet on the ground, I realized, I was in a world of trouble . ... As soon as I stepped out of my bed, the water was up to my ankles. The whole hotel was flooded . ... The interstate was kind of clear, but the service roads were completely covered in water.”
Lewis, who had a room on the first floor, requested and received the last vacant room on the second floor, where he waited out the storm for a few hours before deciding he would be better off in New Braunfels, which is at a higher elevation than Houston.
“The water was about up to my door frame on my pickup. I did the dumb move, I tried to get out of there. The water was knee high. I have rubber boots on right now and my feet were soaking wet . ... I knew my truck could make it through that, as long as it’s not up to my hood . ... What I did was reckless but at the same time, they are talking about 20 more inches of rain. So I could either get on top of a roof and get stranded there or try to drive through with my truck. So, it was kind of pick your poison.”
Before he left Houston yesterday, Lewis said he helped several homeless people who were stranded by a bridge by driving them to a gas station. Other people on wave runners and jet skis were saving people as well, he said.
“There are people in jet skis going on the service roads. They are carrying their belongings and people to higher ground — it’s just phenomenal. This is a helpyour-neighbor kind of state . ... You see division in the races, in politics. There are people out there helping each other out who are not the same skin color. They might not have the same beliefs. ... We need this right now.”