By EO Global Staff

On Saturday morning, 26 August, it became apparent that Houston, the fourth-largest city in the U.S., was in deep trouble–chest-deep in homes and over the roofs of cars and 18-wheelers, to be exact. The floodwaters were rising and families, moms, dads, dogs and young children were seeking refuge on the roofs of their homes, praying for rescue.

This summer has been a bad one for flooding: Southeast Asia’s most severe monsoon season in years has killed more than 1,200 people in India, Nepal and Bangladesh. Currently, the 20 million residents of Mumbai and the 6 million residents of Houston are experiencing unprecedented flooding tragedies that continue to unfold. The images are haunting.

When the floodwaters began to rise in Texas, EO’s Houston chapter president, Josh Jacobs, knew his fellow member-leaders would be in a unique position to Boldly Go and Make a Mark on their communities. With around 150 members scattered across Greater Houston and the impacted region, he started a WhatsApp page where members could connect to share information about procedures, rescues, relief availability and next steps.

The page became a lifeline where EO members found support and help as Hurricane Harvey raged on . . . and on . . . and on, for four days and nights of seemingly endless heavy downpours, with some regions reporting up to 51 inches of rain.

While Harvey was still pounding the region, about 30 EO members and their families helped clean out one member’s flooded house: ripping out and removing flood-soaked carpet, sheetrock and ruined furniture. What would have taken the family several days to accomplish was done in about three hours.