Indian Americans Rally to Help Flood Victims in Houston

As catastrophic tropical storm continues to flood Houston, Texas, with hundreds of people are being evacuated and rescued, the Indian American community in the city is coming together to help in the relief efforts. Many organisations run by Indians are providing food, shelter and support through other means to those in need.

Indian businesses are opening their buildings to provide accommodation. The Universal Volunteers Group is helping with evacuations from flood-affected areas. Indian doctors such as Surya Raguthu and  Manjula Raguthu are providing free medical consultations, reported Times of India. Masala Radio is also broadcasting continuous live reports to keep people of Houston updated with latest news about the hurricane, and the different measures being taken up for relief operations.

Many Indian restaurants, such as Curry House in Cypress and Hyderabad, a restaurant in Woodlands, are providing free food. Many others, such as Biryani Express and Deep Foods, are distributing food packets.

The Indian community has been actively helping in rescue efforts, along with the emergency operations center at Houston. The Telugu Association of North America (TANA) sent out a message to all the people belongig to the community in Houston to contact them for any help.

Record-shattering Storm

At least 30 flood-related deaths have been confirmed by local officials. Parts of Houston have recorded 30 or as high as 40 inches of rain so far.

Talking about the flooding, Lokesh Alekanti, a software engineer from Houston told The Hindu, “The floodwaters have even touched the huge sign boards on the roads at several places making it difficult to move out. Only emergency services are on and no one is daring to go onto the roads.”

Indian Community Affected

The hurricane has severely affected about 100,000 Indians living in the area.

About 200 Indian students were marooned during the Houston floods but they were eventually declared to be safe. Two Indian students who were rescued from a flooded lake in Texas are in a critical condition.

“Things are getting bad to worse,” said Vijay Pallod, a resident of Houston, PTI reported.