Desсrіptive Essay

Hurricane Harvey

My hand abruptly rose to defend my eyes from the bright, white television light that projected the aftermath of the disaster that wrecked the city of Houston. My hand slowly moved out of my face and my eyes widened at the highways drowning in murky water, rescuers rowing their boats to make it from one street to another, and people swimming in a backstroke technique to save their loved ones, without looking back at their engulfed houses.“Breaking News” once again pierced my swollen, red eyes as the bold magenta letters displayed across the screen. The reporter announced the detrimental hurricane and claiming it as “Harvey.” As the cataclysmic wind and rain came to a halt, the news anchor presented the immensely destroyed divisions of Houston. The monstrous Hurricane Harvey swiped the entire city with its claws. The anchor stressed to stay inside or search for safety. Only half of his torso was visible, giving the illusion that he too was being consumed and swallowed by the massive storm. Hurricane Harvey resulted in mass destruction of residential property and endangered the lives of civilians, including mine.

The powerful Hurricane Harvey left a clutter of demolished houses and neighborhood streets submerged in contaminated water. I forcefully pressed the “off” button on the remote and headed to my room. The horror movie that played right outside my four walls was haunting my mind. I gulped in terror. Suddenly, my eyes drew weary and I was drifted into the clouds. “Beep, Beep, Beep” the smoke detector shouted in anger. I rose out of bed in panic. I groaned at the irritating alarm, and every muscle in my body had no energy to move. My brain formulated several different mission plans to figure out how to stop the sound without moving out of the comfort of my soft, silk sheets. The laws of nature didn’t agree with the plans and I yanked the blanket off my heated body and sat up on my bed. My feet dangled off the bed and my eyes remained half closed. I scooted down and my toes felt a wet sensation. My eyes now fully opened and I stared into confusion. Turning my lamp on, I discovered what I now consider my greatest fear. Flood water cracked through the walls of my room and an entire lake filled up my sanctuary. I jolted out of my room and my parents were standing in my living room, both frozen as an icicle. The water crept in slowly like a smooth criminal, and we all knew we had to act fast. My heart raced as my father dialed 911, but no answer was given. Hoping for a solution, my mother threw dirty rags onto the floor. Three knocks banged on our front door and my mother scurried to the entrance and there was an angel, our neighbor Steve. Steve warned us about the waters coming in closer if we stayed any longer in our home. He gestured to us to get into his silver boat. We swished through the murky waters and the surroundings were foreign to me. As we went deeper into our driveway, the more it felt like getting into a fifty foot pool. By this moment, I could only see the roof of our cars. We rowed away from our sunken house and drifted into the sea of despair. My fellow neighbors were riding in boats as well. The confusion of rowing a boat on a neighborhood street struck me, but I knew from the flooded streets that it was our only chance for living. I examined the houses as only the roofs were clear to me; the houses had trash piled on top of their red roofs, foggy water was now a part of the decoration in the houses, and creatures were swimming in their front yards. The streets were being blocked off, prohibiting the access to higher level water. In addition to the destroyed residential property, Harvey endangered the lives of civilians.

The citizens of Houston were risking their lives for survival. As we made our way across the sea, rescuers used their heavy boats and strong upper body strength to save local citizens. The rescue teams dived into the polluted waters and swam to save elderly residents. A heroic firefighter carried a newborn baby in his arms through waist-high water. A church volunteer organization grasped the hands of a poor Hispanic family to evacuate them from their hazardous home. The family cried in relief as they were set onto the boats and carried away like royalty to a nearby shelter. After several days at a community shelter, my family and I watched on our TV sets the devastation that the gruesome Harvey brought in. Locals formed an enormous queue stretching to China only to buy a gallon of milk. Because of the suspension of businesses, milk, fruits, vegetables, and many other valuable goods were not in stock, and this left many in utter hopelessness to provide for themselves and family. No matter how long or difficult it was to obtain food, citizens of Houston fought to end their desperation. Based on effects, the starvation and limit of transportation left a massive dent on the city itself and its people.

Finally, after months of reconstruction and loads of assistance from our friends and family, our home was renovated into a new and improved living space. The year of constant struggle and the anniversary of Harvey made my family and I reminisce tragedy and perseverance. I wanted to personally shake hands with each rescuer, shelter volunteer, firefighter, and as well as our neighbor Steve, for their efforts. The annihilated houses on our flooded street were an experience we hope to never see again. From living in dusty, cold, beaten down shelters to missing weeks of valuable education, losing loved ones, and starving until our bodies had transformed into skeletons, the community and the entire city was going into a black hole from the damage that was done. Houstonians, including myself, had fought a battle against Harvey’s ultimate destruction.