After Harvey, Heroes
The Coast Guard and the regular military have done more than 16,000 rescues in Houston since Harvey hit. Other uniformed first responders, including helpers from the FDNY and NYPD, have saved many more. But plenty of regular citizens have added to the heroism. Even a smattering of examples is inspirational:
The “Cajun Navy,” a group of recreational boat owners and volunteers who helped the rescue effort after last year’s Louisiana flood, mobilized again.
So did countless individual boatsmen (and jetskiers) in Texas. Asked on-camera by a reporter what he was going to do with his boat, one Texas City man replied: “Go try to save some lives.”
When 78-year-old J.C. Spencer and his wife, Karen, realized they needed to evacuate their home, they called their local Chick-fil-A, where they’re regulars, to order two grilled chicken burritos with extra egg — and a boat.
“The manager said that she would send her husband, who has a boat, and she did,” J.C. said. But when the boat couldn’t get into the house, “two wonderful men” came up on jet skis and rescued them. They’re still waiting on the food, though.
Amanda Labove has been a one-woman call center, dispatching complete strangers to Orange and other small towns along the Texas-Louisiana border. By 1 p.m. Wednesday, BuzzFeed reported, volunteers had picked up 500 people in Orange alone.
“I just showed up early this morning and started taking calls, sending people where they needed to be and doing the best I can,” Labove said.
Of all the “human chain” stories, our favorite is the one that formed Wednesday to help a woman who’d gone into labor get into a rescue truck.
Countless good Samaritans have been pictured saving animals, getting them in boats, off the tops of cars and houses, freeing horses trapped in cages.
Journalists have also put down the mic to lend a hand. CNN’s Ed Lavandera helped rescuers get an older man into a boat in Dickinson. And KHOU-TV’s Brandi Smith interrupted her live broadcast to tell rescuers a truck driver was stuck in floodwaters.
And then there are all those who provided refuge and succor:
A chain of Houston mattress stores infamous for its TV ads opened up its locations to serve as makeshift shelters. Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale on Tuesday said one of his stores was supporting 360 people and another 400.
When a group of bakers got stuck inside the undamaged El Bolillo Bakery’s Wayside Drive location, the workers started baking sheets of pan dulce to feed the storm’s victims.
“For most of the time, they decided not to waste time and made as much pan dulce as they could,” manager Brian Alvarado said. “How they helped us today is the only reason we were able to open.”
Anheuser-Busch stopped beer-making and started canning clean emergency drinking water, delivering over three truckloads — over 155,000 cans — to the Gulf Coast area.
On Tuesday, an unidentified man dressed up as Spider-Man to give out toys and stickers to children taking shelter at Houston’s George R. Brown Convention Center. The day before, Batman showed up with his 4-year-old son, “Little Batman” to hand out clothes and supplies.
After 9/11, Mister Rogers came out of retirement to tell everyone to “look for the helpers.” In the bleakest depths of a disaster, he noted, average people step up alongside emergency responders to become heroes.
In the wake of Hurricane Harvey, regular Americans are once again proving him right.