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Jet Ski-riding heroes reunite with Houston grandparents they rescued from flood zone

0:40
The moment Houston grandparents reunited with jet ski heroes
ABC News
BySALLY HAWKINS, KELLY MCCARTHY
August 31, 2017, 12:11 AM

— -- An elderly couple from Texas were reunited with a pair of Jet Ski-riding heroes who helped them to escape from their flooded home in north Houston earlier this week.

ABC News was able to connect the couple, Karen and J.C. Spencer, with their previously anonymous saviors, Keith Christensen and Winston Savice, Jr.

"Thank you," J.C. Spencer told them. "You're a hero."

"No problem, someone had to do it," Savice said, as they hugged. "I'm glad to see you guys are safe."

The Spencers said they were OK for the first couple of days of Hurricane Harvey, but things took a turn for the worse on Monday when their home began to fill with water.

J.C. Spencer called the local Chick-fil-A, where the couple are regulars, and the manager sent a boat to help evacuate them. But with limited space, the two were forced to leave many of their possessions behind.

"We had to get out of there so I called Chick-fil-A, now that sounds kind of funny," J.C. Spencer said in an interview on "Good Morning America" Wednesday. "I ordered two grilled chicken burritos with extra egg and a boat. And can you believe that one of the managers of Chick-fil-A, she sent her husband to pick us up and we are so grateful."

Gulf Coast residents struggle to recover after Hurricane Harvey

The storm reached Category 4 before making landfall on the Texas coast, and record rainfall flooded Houston and surrounding areas.
1 of 113
Members of First Baptist Church of Loeb chain saw pews and clean up the church on U.S. 69 that had eight feet of water in it due to Hurricane Harvey flooding in Lumberton, Texas, Sept. 7, 2017.
Bob Daemmrich/Polaris

The couple said they were in the process of figuring out which of their most-prized possessions could fit onto the small rescue boat when the Jet Ski riders showed up and offered to take the couple to higher ground.

"Karen jumped on the back of a Jet Ski and I jumped on the back of another one and they evacuated us to higher ground," J.C. explained.

"I can't believe I'm leaving my flooded house in a Jet Ski," Karen told ABC News in a phone interview on Tuesday.

"Oh well, here we go!" she said, recalling the moment when she boarded the Jet Ski.

They did not get the names of the strangers who helped them -- until today.

The couple had returned to their home on Tuesday because J.C. had forgotten his wallet and wedding ring.

"I couldn't save my house, but I have to save my marriage," J.C. joked.

ABC News' Karma Allen and Rachel Wenzlaff contributed to this report.

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