Two Indian students are in a critical condition after they nearly drowned in Lake Bryan in the US state of Texas, which is battling “catastrophic” flooding and torrential rains after Hurricane Harvey wreaked havoc, claiming at least five lives.
The Indians, studying at the Texas A&M University, are in a critical condition. They were rescued from the lake, where they had gone swimming, by a police officer on Saturday.
According to the Bryan police, an officer patrolling the lake was flagged down by a person who said two people swimming in the lake were in distress.
The person who alerted the officer was with the two students, both in their 20s. He had managed to rescue one of them, while the police officer rescued the other one and treated both of them with CPR until medical help arrived, the police said.
The students were identified as Shalini, and Nikhil Bhatia. They were taken to the CHI St Joseph Hospital, where their condition is stated to be critical.
It was not immediately clear as to why they were swimming in the severe weather.
India’s Consul-General in Houston has been monitoring the two students’ medical needs and the situation closely.
According to the consulate office, Nikhil Bhatia is yet to show signs of improvement, while Shalini showed some improvement today for the first time since her arrival at the hospital.
Nikhil’s mother, Dr Suman Bhatia, has arrived from India and was assisted by the consulate office amidst the devastating flood situations here after being received at the Dallas airport. Whereas, Shalini’s brother will be arriving tomorrow, the consulate said.
Around 13 million people were battling “catastrophic” flooding and torrential rains in the storm-ravaged Texas where Hurricane Harvey has wreaked havoc, turning streets into raging rivers and claiming at least five lives.
Meteorologists have forecast that the historic rainfall will dump up to 50 inches by Wednesday.
Heavy rain bands were expected to move in over the Houston area overnight, which will continue the catastrophic and life-threatening flash-flood emergency in the area.
At least 200 Indian students are stranded at the University of Houston due to “catastrophic” flooding after Hurricane Harvey hit Texas were being evacuated to safer places, authorities have said.
The students were being provided food and other supplies by the Indian-American community in the area.
India’s Consul-General in Houston Anupam Ray has been in touch with the students and monitoring the evacuation process.
TWO QUEBEC WOMEN AMONG THE MANY AFFECTED BY TEXAS FLOODING
Two Quebec women are among the thousands of people caught up in the flooding in Texas caused by Hurricane Harvey — one who can't leave her home and one who has no idea when she can return home.
Emilie Lapointe lives in the Houston area and, like many others in the city, has been confined to her house since the flooding began last Friday.
"I left work Friday at lunchtime, before the flood began, and I have not been out of my house since," she told the French service of The Canadian Press on Monday.
She said even though her neighbourhood has been spared the flooding, she can't go to work because the area where her office is located is flooded.
Lapointe also said even if she wanted to go out, it would be impossible to go far.
"My neighbourhood is not flooded, but all around it is flooded, so I can't go anywhere," she said. "All I do is watch TV to watch the news."
Lapointe said tornado alerts have been issued by authorities "almost every half hour" over the past few days.
"Our cellphones are ringing at all times and there are alerts on TV."
Lapointe said although she still has electricity and supplies of water and food, it's a "scary" situation. But she believes the worst is over.
Fellow Quebecer Marie-Ange Saint-Laurent — who lives on the 27th floor of a Houston condominium building — said she and her American spouse left Houston before the storm for a Louisiana vacation but can't get back home because the airport is closed.
"Our apartment is OK, the only problem is that the first floor of the building is flooded and the elevators have stopped working," she said.
Saint-Laurent, who has lived in Texas for almost three years, said she doesn't know how long she will have to stay in New Orleans or what the next few days will be like for the people of Houston.
"Each millimetre of falling rain adds additional problems," she said. "We live from day to day and we watch the newscasts."
(With Inputs From Canadian Press)
