Two people rescued from flood waters in Harrison County

Two people caught in swiftly moving flood waters near a house were rescued Thursday night in Harrison County.

Harrison County Fire Rescue responded to a call about two people hanging on to trees in flood waters off County Farm Road.

Harrison County Sheriff’s Department and AMR also responded to the call and found a home with flood waters surrounding it. First responders could hear people calling for help, but because the water was moving so quickly, they could not get to the victims.

Gulfport Fire Department Swift Water Rescue Team was called in. They had also responded to a call earlier in the evening to rescue 13 people stranded in a house near a river in Gulfport.

Harrison County Battalion Chief Chad Bryan and Firefighter Jared Bolton were able to make their way to the victims, secure life preservers and using a kayak, make it to one of the victims who was clinging to a tree in the fast moving flood waters. Bolton was able to get a flotation device on one person when they went into the water and had to be rescued.

Gulfport Fire Department arrived and deployed a five-man team that was able to make it to the second victim and pull that person to safety off another tree.

The victims were checked out and one person was sent to the hospital for evaluation.

Authorities are investigating how the two people were swept up in the flood waters, and ended up clinging to trees in the swift water.