EHS Pillars - Fall 2017

THE CITIZEN NAVY
by George Jackson '02
On the Sunday during Harvey, floodwaters started rising rapidly in the Braes Heights neighborhood. My
brother Alex's good friend and fellow Class of 1996 alum, James Kadlick (who lives in the neighborhood),
reached out to Alex and asked him to go get his boat as there was a critical need to evacuate people. James
had his boat at his house and was out doing rescues all day Sunday. Alex, who lives in Montrose, was able
to get to his boat and he picked me up at my home in West University on the way to Braes Heights.
The scene we confronted that afternoon was astonishing. Water had made it all the way from Brays Bayou
to Pershing Middle School. We backed the boat into the first place we could find deep enough water and set
out into the neighborhood. We had never seen anything like it; the streets were rivers! The current was so
strong it made it difficult to navigate our small fly-fishing boat.
We made our way toward the bayou and found a huge Harris County emergency vehicle that had stalled
out. The emergency workers had been stuck there for hours. We pulled a few out and took them to dry land.
During this time, people were sending us text messages and flagging us down, pleading to be rescued.
We started our rescues Sunday afternoon and worked until dark. I will never forget a woman who was nine
months pregnant, trapped in her flooded home. Her neighbor, Mandy Malone Loper '98, alerted us because
she could go into labor any hour. We found out that she had the baby the next day!
We also rescued an elderly couple. The wife had a neurological disorder and was wheelchair‐bound, and
the husband had advanced dementia. That was a difficult rescue. The husband was extremely confused
and did not know what was going on. Finally, with the help of neighbors, we convinced the couple's son that
they needed to get out. We carried the lady above our heads in her wheelchair (water was up to our chests)
and placed her in the boat. We had to carry the man against his will and put him in the boat. It was just
about dark when we got them to the unofficial staging point at Molina's Restaurant on Holcombe. They both
required medical attention immediately, but we could not get an ambulance dispatched. I called the West
University fire department and they sent their large emergency vehicle and picked the couple up and sped
them to the hospital. The couple's son called us the next day and was profoundly appreciative. The doctors
told him that his mother had a high probability of dying (her meds were lost in the flood) if she had not made
it to the hospital.
Alex, James, and I continued our rescue efforts for five days, helping more than 100 people. Every citizen
we met who was not severely affected had stepped up and was out helping strangers. This navy of private
citizens was awe‐inspiring—and we all felt fortunate to be a part of it.
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