PHOENIX — The death toll is climbing, and many are still missing in the devastating floods in central Texas. In the heart of search and rescue efforts, one volunteer has lived this nightmare firsthand.
Jonathan McComb lost his entire family in the Wimberley flood of 2015.
Now McComb is opening up to ABC15 from central Texas, where he is putting his life at risk to save others, performing swift water rescues and taking part in search efforts.
He says anyone can train to respond to a natural disaster and help save lives.
On Memorial Day weekend of 2015, McComb was on vacation in Wimberley, Texas with his wife, Laura, and two little kids, Andrew and Leighton. They were staying at a vacation home along with five family friends.
McComb is the sole survivor of that group. Late on Saturday night of that weekend back in 2015, the Blanco River rose, and a wall of water swept the entire vacation home away.
This year, McComb marked the solemn ten-year anniversary by returning to Wimberley to honor his family, and spread the ashes of his faithful yellow lab Maggie, the only other one to survive that horrific night.
Seeing a similar, frantic scene play out almost exactly ten years later, makes McComb think of his family.
“Every second, every day,” he said.
McComb escaped the flood waters with several broken bones and a punctured lung.
“I can remember being, laying in the hospital bed myself, you know I said, when I get out, I'm going to be a part of this,” McComb remembers.
He helped with the search then, and he is doing it again now.
On another holiday weekend, with more than 80 dead and more missing due to the catastrophic flooding in central Texas, McComb set out to do what he personally vowed to do; rushing from his home in Corpus Christi up to Hill Country to help.
“You go through two different emotions, that's one, of heartache and pain and hurt, and suffering for the for the parents, for the individuals missing loved ones. And then on the other side, you know, you work your tail off, and you don't stop,” McComb said.
“I've said there's a time to cry, and it's not during the day,” he added. “Go home and do that at night. And get here and focus, and do what we can to help those that can't help themselves right now.”
After losing his family, McComb felt compelled to get certified in swift water rescues, training as a volunteer with Texas Search and Rescue, known as TEXSAR.
Do you have a concern in your community or a news tip? We want to hear from you!
Connect with us: share@abc15.com
“There's a lot of work and effort and time into it, but anybody can do it if you put your mind to it,” McComb said. “Just reach out to local search and rescue organizations in your area, in your county, in your state.”
In Arizona, volunteers can train with Central Arizona Mountain Rescue Association, or CAMRA. The program is run by the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office. There are also other volunteer rescue groups across the state associated with other county sheriff’s offices.
CAMRA reports a dramatic increase in swiftwater rescues in Arizona, writing on its website: “This is in part due to the continued influx of new people who are unaware of the dangers presented by Arizona's flash floods.”
Captain Bobby Dubnow with the Phoenix Fire Department is one Special Operations professional who trains the volunteers new to these programs. He says they will also learn from the highly skilled volunteers they will be working alongside.
Much of the flash flood risk is in the state is in northern Arizona, Captain Dubnow says, where small creeks and tributaries can feed into a wall of water that creates the flash, with little warning to those nearby. In the Valley, he says dry river bottoms can pose a risk, especially for the unhoused population who may use those spots to live and sleep.
Yet, Captain Dubnow tells ABC15 that Arizonans are fortunate because there are fewer residential areas up against rivers, like there are in Texas’ so called “Flash Flood Alley.” In the early hours of Friday morning, the Guadalupe River rose 26 feet in just 45 minutes, according to state officials.
“We're here to just have one common goal, and that's to get some closure for families,” McComb said about his work with TEXSAR.
Now remarried, with a young daughter, McComb leaves his family this week to help impacted friends, and strangers, search for missing loved ones.
Having lived through his own immeasurable loss, he also brings perspective.
“Rely on your faith, and lean on your friends, lean on your families and get through this,” McComb said. “Don't let the tragedy define you, but you define the tragedy, and how you deal with it, and how you come of it.”
McComb, taking his second chance at life, as an opportunity.
“I know I'm here for a reason,” he said. “And I'm here to help.”
The devastating floods in central Texas have left families and communities in urgent need of support. Scripps News and the Scripps Howard Fund are partnering to provide critical relief to those impacted. Every dollar donated here will go directly to helping victims recover.
This campaign is a Scripps News initiative in collaboration with the Scripps Howard Fund, a 501(c)(3) organization. Contributions to this campaign are tax deductible.
