Houston residents speak out on historic flooding from Hurricane Harvey
By
Trévon Austin
29 August 2017
Stories of devastation along the Gulf Coast continue to emerge three days after Hurricane Harvey made landfall near Rockport, Texas.
Perhaps the most glaring and harrowing example is an image that has gone viral on Twitter showing a number of elderly women sitting helplessly in water inside a nursing home in Dickinson, Texas. It was not until the image spread across the Internet that any rescue efforts were made.
Incidents such as these have been common throughout the flooded areas in and around the city of Houston, large swathes of which have been submerged in up to ten feet of water. Individuals have turned to social media to reach out to relatives, friends, neighbors and relief organizations capable of helping them escape the rising waters.
Fouad Hijazi, an immigrant from Lebanon, told the WSWS of the great efforts working people have taken to help their neighbors.
“You can hear rescue helicopters not too far from here, but if you walk to Stella Link you can see people in their own motorboats, big trucks and kayaks trying to reach others. I saw James [a neighbor] wearing a life vest and rope going to help out.”
Regular transportation into and out of the city has been virtually shut down as parts of Interstate 610 are completely underwater.
Fouad said, “Over here we didn’t get water in the house, but the streets were still flooded. The closer you get to Braes bayou, the worse it gets. No one can really get around because there’s water everywhere.”
Local rescue efforts have been limited by available resources. President Donald Trump pledged rapid action from Congress, stating that recovery from the disaster will be “a long and difficult road,” but…