Harvey’s floodwaters reached from the city’s crowded apartment buildings to Greater Houston’s rural countryside.
For farmers like Lester Morrow, that meant his 500 acres of land were underwater.
Morrow says the farm had never flooded that badly in his entire life.
“I guess the hardest thing about [the storm] was trying to decide what to do with everything,” he said. “The water was rising too fast. There was no time to think.”
Morrow was able to get his family and dogs to a safe place while Harvey’s floodwaters took over the farm. But he was sure he would lose everything else - all of his land, and the dozens of beloved animals.
“You learn to love [the animals] like your own kids,” he said.
“[The night we left the farm] was a really tough night,” he said. “[My fiancee] and I just tried to make peace knowing that [the animals] hopefully went fast and they didn't suffer a whole lot.”
He thought he would never see them again.
Days after the storm, Morrow returned to see the damage.
“I wasn't sure what I would find when I came back,” he said.
What he discovered was destruction, debris, and a moment he’ll never forget - captured on camera.
“All the sudden from out of nowhere, that damn pig just come waddling up toward me," he said.
As Morrow waded through the water in his driveway, he saw Patty the pig in the distance.
“Patty! Oh my God baby how did you survive?” he said in the recording.
“The emotions that came over me, I can't really describe,” he said. “To this day I can't describe what was going on inside of me. It's a feeling I never felt before.”
Not all of the animals survived. About 17 animals died, but baby goats, a pregnant goat, Patty the pig and several horses and cows were spared. Murrow doesn’t know how, but he does know it’s a miracle.
Morrow said his animals have been acting differently and seem a bit spooked since the flooding, but he’s hopeful he can get them back to good health and good spirits soon.