Man rescues family trapped in Texas home amid surging waters, pitch darkness: 'I had to do something'
"Something had to be done immediately," Crowder said. "That's kind of when I started yelling out to them, and we began that evacuation process."
Man rescues Texas family from flooding: ‘It was chaotic’
As cleanup and recovery operations get underway in Texas in the wake of historic and deadly flooding, incredible stories of survival are starting to emerge. Matthew Crowder joined FOX Weather from Leander, Texas, on Monday afternoon to explain how he was able to save a family from the raging floodwaters.
JONESTOWN, Texas– A Texas man took matters into his own hands when he bravely rescued a family as their home was flooding during the deadly and historic floods on the Fourth of July.
Matthew Crowder said he passes by the neighborhood where the rescue happened every day to get to work. He told FOX Weather he was going to work early, at about 2:30 a.m. and didn't expect to see flooding.
HISTORIC TEXAS FLOODING DEATH TOLL SURPASSES 100 AS DESPERATE SEARCH FOR SURVIVORS ENTERS 5TH DAY
Photo of the floodwaters in Jonestown, Texas.
(Matthew Crowder)
He got out of his vehicle in a neighborhood in Jonestown, when he saw a family trapped in their home that was filling with floodwater.
Crowder said when he realized what was happening, he called 911. But the situation was fast becoming more dire.
"Something had to be done immediately," Crowder said. "That's kind of when I started yelling out to them, and we began that evacuation process."
Crowder said he'd never seen or spoken to the family before the rescue played out.
WATCH: HOME SWEPT DOWN GUADALUPE RIVER DURING DEADLY TEXAS FLOODING
Watch: House floats down Guadalupe River during historic Texas flooding
Video from Friday during the devastating flooding shows a house moving downriver before getting caught against a bridge in Center Point. The flooding has left more than 100 people dead across Texas hill country.
"I had to do something for these people," he said.
Crowder described the rescue as "chaotic." He said the power went out halfway through the rescue, making it pitch black while he got the people to safety.
He assisted the family with getting from the front porch of their home into their truck and ran to see what the safest way to get them out would be.
"I had gotten overcome by some water and pushed down the street," he said. He twisted his ankle and got some cuts and scrapes.
In the end, he and the family made it out safely.
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Watch: Texas devastated by historic, deadly flooding
FOX Weather Correspondent Robert Ray got a firsthand look at the devastation caused by historic and deadly flooding that decimated communities across Texas’ Hill Country over the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
"I just believe it was, I was in the right place at the right time," he said.
He said what he did still hasn't hit him.
"My family is proud," he said.
Crowder said, as far as he knows, the family has been doing OK since the rescue, but he hasn't spoken to them.