A Houston, Texas man barely survived a severe storm thanks to a good Samaritan.
Jeff Jones was driving home in his pickup truck on Tuesday when heavy rain and winds battered the city, damaging homes, downing trees and flooding roads.
Jones was trying to get back to his family when he “misjudged” a submerged railing while driving through a flooded road near Interstate 45. FOX 26 Houston report.
The floodwaters first swept Jones’ truck onto a footbridge, then the roof collapsed, sending the vehicle down a culvert.
“About 30 to 45 seconds later I heard the roof of my truck collapse, my truck went into the water and I was thrown off the bridge,” Jones told the outlet.
“I knew I didn’t want to get out of the truck because the water would wash me away faster than the truck,” he said.
During that chaotic moment, the Houston man said he was thinking about his wife and family.
“I thought the truck was going to flip over… All I could think about was what legacy I was leaving in this world,” he said.
Jones called 911, but unfortunately was unable to provide the operator with his exact location after being swept off the road.
His truck then began to lift up into a dangerous 45-degree angle.
“The scariest part was when they started to lift and we had to think about an exit strategy,” Jones recalled.
“I saw a man slamming into the windscreen. The water was high, I think it was about chest deep,” witness Rene Young told local station.
That’s when a witness intervened and saved his life.
The man was Robert Chance.
“The truck was starting to float. The water was actually coming into the bed of the truck. I started at the front of the truck because a lot of the water was coming in from the back. The front was the driest at the time,” Chance said.
Jones said Chance helped him escape the sinking truck and he’s grateful to be alive.
“I’ve got a small scratch on my hand from the glass here and a bruise here from trying to get people’s attention at the window,” Jones said. “The rest of the scars are on the inside and will take a while to heal.”
Now he is warning others when flood warnings are issued to “turn back and not drown.”
