Dozens of drivers in Houston on Tuesday banded together to ensure that an elderly man would not be swept away by Hurricane Harvey’s floodwaters.
Maritza Castillo and her husband were on Interstate 10 in Houston on their way to assist a family member who had been trapped by floods, but wound up saving a stranger instead after they noticed floodwaters about to sweep away an elderly man’s SUV, KTVI reported.
Castillo and her husband were stuck in traffic due to flooding when they noticed the elderly man.
“My heart started beating fast,” she said.
The couple, along with dozens of other drivers waiting in traffic, decided to dive into the water to help the man.
One person came up with the idea to form a human chain, so the motorists linked arms and inched toward the submerged SUV.
After facing some difficulty trying to get the SUV’s door to open, they rescued the man.
Castillo said rescue crews took the man to the hospital and reunited him with his son.
Forming a human chain seems to be a tried and true method to save people from drowning.
In July, 70-80 Florida beachgoers formed a human chain to save a family caught in a riptide from drowning.
This month, several hikers formed a human chain across an overflowing river caused by flash floods at Utah’s Zion National Park.