KERR COUNTY, Texas (KXXV) — Cries for help echoed through the trees as Carl Jeter stood looking out over the climbing Guadalupe River, and saw a young woman clinging to a tree limb, floodwaters raging below her.
“She survived this ordeal 15, 16, 17, however many miles it was down the river, over four dams, under two bridges,” Jeter said. “Then when you get here after all of that, you've got the strength to pull yourself into that tree limb.”
Jeter said he first heard the woman’s cries while surveying the damage near his home. He called 911 but couldn’t reach anyone initially, so he drove to a bridge in Center Point and flagged down a DPS trooper, who was able to summon help.
Rescue crews soon arrived with a swift water boat.
“They are going to come to you. I’ll see you over here soon,” one could be heard saying in video footage.
“They were able to get a life jacket on her and get her out of the tree and into the boat,” Jeter said. “She was really weak, in shock, just traumatized.”
“She wholeheartedly agreed that God found a reason to save her. When I visited with her yesterday in the hospital, she reemphasized that again — it's a God thing,” Jeter said.
Well over 100 people remain missing after floodwaters tore through the Guadalupe River nearly a week ago. Local and state leaders said it remains difficult to put an exact number on how many are still unaccounted for.
“Your eyes can’t really comprehend what you're looking at, and that’s the most difficult part,” Jeter said.
Now, the two share a connection like no other.
“They've all assured me, ‘Carl, you're going to be part of our family for the rest of your life,’” Jeter said. “They're just ever grateful and I keep telling them I’m not a hero in this. There’s heroes out there, but I’m not one of them. God put me in the right place at the right time to find this girl and get the help that she needed.”
The recent flooding has left families and entire communities in urgent need of support. Scripps News and the Scripps Howard Fund are partnering to provide critical relief. Every dollar donated will go directly toward helping victims recover.
