SAVANNAH GUTHRIE AT FLOOD SITE: TEXAS FLOOD SURVIVORS REVEAL THE NIGHT THEY WERE SWEPT FROM THEIR HOME
A NIGHTMARE UNFOLDS WHILE TEXANS SLEEP
It started as just another rainy night in Texas. For Libby and Doug, like so many others, there was no warning, no siren, no sign that their lives were about to be turned upside down. They went to bed expecting nothing more than a soggy morning. But by dawn, their world had changed forever.
FROM BED TO BATTLING FOR THEIR LIVES
The storm hit fast and hit hard. Doug woke up to the sound of rain and spotted a stranded motorist outside. As he stepped out with a cup of coffee, he noticed water creeping across the parking lot. Within moments, the family car was floating away. Panic set in as water began pouring through the front door. There was no time to think—only to act.
Libby and Doug scrambled onto their mattress, the water rising so quickly they could touch the ceiling. In less than five minutes, five feet of water filled their home. “I thought we’d get a little wet, maybe muddy,” Libby recalled, her voice trembling. “But then we were just… up, and the water kept coming.”
A FIGHT FOR SURVIVAL IN THE DARK
As the floodwaters surged, Doug managed to stash his beloved guitars in the crawl space—one last act of hope amidst chaos. But soon, the current was too strong. The couple clung to their front door, torn between the terror of being trapped inside and the risk of being swept away.
Then, with a sudden surge, the river claimed them. They were ripped from their home and hurled into the night. Grabbing onto a support post outside, they found themselves not alone—neighbors and strangers were already holding on for dear life. “I grabbed his hand, she grabbed mine, and we hung on. We were at the roof line. That’s how high the water got,” Doug recounted, still in disbelief.
For nearly two hours, they clung to hope as debris and cars floated past, watching their neighborhood dissolve under the relentless onslaught. “I really thought that might be the end,” Doug admitted, his eyes shining with emotion.
MIRACLES AND AFTERMATH: FINDING SOLID GROUND
By some miracle, the waters finally receded. Exhausted and shaken, Libby and Doug stumbled back onto dry land, greeted not by first responders, but by bewildered tow truck drivers who could scarcely believe anyone had survived. “We told them we’d been hanging on through the whole thing,” Libby said, her voice cracking.
But the ordeal wasn’t over. Their home was gone, their belongings ruined. Yet, in true Texas spirit, Libby showed up for her double shift at the restaurant the very next day. Her boss was stunned. “The last they’d heard, I was in the ER,” she laughed softly. But she was determined—not just to work, but to serve food to the very first responders who had risked everything for her community. “It meant a lot to me that they were out there, because it could have been us they were looking for.”
HEARTS OF TEXAS: COMMUNITY, COURAGE, AND UNBREAKABLE BONDS
Through it all, Libby and Doug’s love for each other never wavered. “I just wanted to make it out with him,” Libby said, her voice thick with tears. “When it started, I told him, at least we’ll go down together or make it out together. And we did. I’m so glad.”
Their courage and resilience are echoed by countless others across Texas—ordinary people doing extraordinary things, showing up for work, feeding first responders, and holding tight to each other when the world is swept away.
As Texas reels from historic flooding, stories like Libby and Doug’s remind us that even in the darkest nights, hope, love, and the unbreakable spirit of a community can light the way home.
