Issue link: https://tmcpulse.uberflip.com/i/900421
t m c » p u l s e | o c t o b e r 2 0 1 7 21 21 Highway 288, the bus encountered high water. All the passengers voted unani- mously to turn around. The bus driver headed to a shelter at a nearby high school, and on the way I got a call from a restricted phone number. It was 911 checking to make sure we had been rescued. We arrived at Kempner High School around noon. It had been turned into an American Red Cross shelter that was as busy as a thriving metropolis. People drove up and unloaded bags upon bags of clothing, food, bedding, toiletries and even games and activities. One entire wall of the cafeteria had been transformed into a giant clothes bin. Matt and the kids were able to find dry shoes, and we were all treated to a hot lunch. We chose bedding to make a pallet on the floor and Matt foraged for some toiletries while the kids settled down to watch Netflix on my phone. We made friends with the couple next to us, who had also evacuated from their home. This was the first time in a while that Matt and I felt comfortable enough to close our eyes. I had never stayed at a shelter before, so I had nothing to compare it to. But everyone who volun- teered—from the Red Cross to the high school students to the Fort Bend ISD employees—made us feel at home. We didn't stay long, though, because one of Matt's work colleagues offered us a place to stay. Over the next week, we stayed in four different homes, dragging our doubled-up garbage bags with us. By Sunday, Sept. 3, nearly a week after we were rescued, the water had receded enough for us to gain access to our home. The house took in 17 inches of water and the garage took in 20 inches. Both of our cars were ruined, and we had to com- pletely gut the first floor of our house. We hauled ruined chairs, lamps, shelves and toys to the curb, the spoils of 15 years of marriage and two kids. It's been more than five weeks since the storm. We are so thankful to everyone who helped us, from work friends to high school sports teams to random people who just wanted to lend a hand. We have a long road ahead—it might take until late December to make our house inhabitable again—but we'll get there. — Christine Hall A large S.W.A.T. vehicle pulled up, and a line of wet people climbed on. In just two hours, my children had ridden on a boat, in the back of a dump truck and, now, in a S.W.A.T. vehicle. These were the best hours of their lives. Riding a school bus to a nearby shelter, the family encountered high water at Highway 6 and State Highway 288. S T O R I E S