East County Resident Rescued from River

The Porter Fire Department rescued a man from the San Jacinto River Thursday. Many rescues due to flood waters have been reported recently, but the East County rescue was different from most because the victim intentionally went into the water, along with some friends.

According to Porter Fire Chief Carter Johnson, three men and a woman in Porter’s Riverwalk Subdivision decided to go swimming in the river, even with storm and flood warnings issued by the National Weather Service. The four friends intended to stay away from the more turbulent and swift moving water, but ventured out a little too far. One of the men, who is in his late twenties, was suddenly swept away by the strong current. All his friends could do for him was get out of the water and call 911.

The Porter Fire Department responded to the dispatch, which went out around 5:15 p.m. Upon arrival, the friends led firefighters to the missing man’s last known location on the river, deep in the woods, Johnson said. Two rescue crews split up and began to search the area and downstream. One of the groups heard the missing man’s cries for help and located him in a section of pond adjacent to the river. The man managed to struggle against the current and get into the calmer water, Johnson said, but he was exhausted. The area was so flooded, the man did not know which direction to take from there until he heard the sound of PFD’s rescue vehicles and began attempting to head toward them. The man was safely recovered from the river and evaluated by Emergency Medical Personnel and released.

Members of the Montgomery County Precinct 4 Constable’s Office Swift Water Rescue Team also responded, but the victim was located before they arrived.

Chief Johnson said it was important to note that a healthy man in his twenties could easily have lost his life, and others should consider the incident before making the same mistake.

“Playing in a swollen river is not a suggested way to go swimming,” Johnson said.