Onlooker captures footage of incredible scene at chain store after Texas floods: 'The cavalry is literally here'

Commenters online applauded Texas-based supermarket chain H-E-B after a TikToker posted footage of the company's disaster relief trucks rolling into a parking lot in Kerrville, Texas.

Kerrville had been the site of deadly flash floods just days prior. 

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"So I'm in Kerrville, right? And I'm at H-E-B," explained the TikToker, who goes by the name Wayne Campbell (@waynecampbell38). "And guess who's here? The cavalry." 

The camera then panned from the front of an H-E-B store to a massive semi truck rolling into the parking lot. Large lettering alongside the truck read, "H-E-B Disaster Relief."

In smaller lettering below appeared the words, "Helping Our Neighbors In Need." 

"The cavalry is literally here," the TikToker narrated. "They're pulling in right now." 

The TikToker then panned further to reveal another H-E-B Disaster Relief semi following the first into the lot.

"Before FEMA, H-E-B. Because this is what H-E-B does," the TikToker said. 

Over 100 people, including dozens of children, were killed after sudden and severe flash floods struck Central Texas over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, NBC News reported. 

Data from the Weather Prediction Center showed that some parts of Central Texas received upward of 20 inches of rainfall from 7 a.m. on Thursday, July 3, through 9 p.m. on Monday, July 7.

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Bertram, Texas, which the Weather Prediction Center said received 20.92 inches of rainfall over that span, averages just 2.1 inches of rainfall for July and 33 inches for the entire year, according to myPerfectWeather.

The catastrophic rainfall and resulting flash floods have left many searching for answers.

While no single severe weather event can be tied directly to human causes, scientists have predicted that the magnitude of extreme weather events will increase as global temperatures rise.

Texas had shown evidence of this shift long before the recent flash floods. 

"In recent years, the frequency of precipitation events in Texas has gone down, with more rainfall occurring in rapid and intense bursts, leading to more severe inland flooding interspersed by longer periods of drought," explained the Meadows Center for Water and the Environment at Texas State University, citing a study from 2018. 

As air warms, it can hold more moisture, which leads to bigger rainstorms, according to Climate Central. For every one degree Fahrenheit of temperature increase, air is capable of absorbing 4% more moisture. 

Making matters worse, higher surface temperatures cause more water to evaporate, further increasing the amount of water vapor in the air, according to GLISA, a collaboration between NOAA and the University of Michigan.

As one might predict, this has led to an increase in the intensity of rainfall across the US, with 88% of cities analyzed having experienced an increase in rainfall intensity since 1970, according to Climate Central's analysis of decades' worth of climate data.

Tragically, these figures suggest that the future will bring more severe weather disasters, such as the flash floods that struck Kerrville, Texas. 

Beyond the unspeakable loss of life, these disasters also destroy homes, livelihoods, and communities.

Even far beyond the areas directly afflicted by severe-weather events, homeowners and businesses are impacted by soaring insurance premiums that can make it difficult to afford adequate coverage.

Global temperatures are expected to continue increasing if humans continue to release heat-trapping pollutants into the atmosphere. While initiatives are underway worldwide to limit such pollution, such as the adoption of clean energy, companies like H-E-B are helping to mitigate the impact when disaster strikes.

"The fact that HEB HAS a disaster relief deployment is amazing," one user commented in response to the TikTok video. "There's a reason why Texans love HEB so much." 

"HEB comes from Kerrville," added another. "Makes it even sweeter."  

Indeed, according to the Texas State Historical Association, H-E-B began in 1905 as a one-room grocery store on the ground floor of a family home in Kerrville, Texas.  

As one commenter put it, "Texas takes care of Texas." 

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