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'I Miss The Winters': Minnesota Native Talks Waiting Out Harvey

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A Minnesota native, his wife and 7-month-old child are riding out Hurricane Harvey in their apartment.

Kiel Hockett says he had no choice but to stay inside when the water began to rise.

"I'm from Chaska, she's from DC, and it's not like we had anywhere close we could go," he said.

With no place to go, Hockett and his wife, Kristin, watched as rising floodwaters began to swallow the 25-story building they live in.

"Raging waters the on ramps…the highways are completely flooded," Hockett said.

He lives just west of downtown in Houston Heights.

"I saw people swimming out there trying to help people get out on Sunday morning," Hocket said. "There were cars that were completely under water on Memorial Drive that we didn't know about until the water went down this morning."

Hockett says he was amazed at the power of the water.

"I've seen the Minnesota River flood. I've seen it kind of rise up over Highway 41 down in Chaska," he said. "Think of that in a city of six and a half million people."

For now, Hockett and his family are surrounded by water, but he was able to make it outside Tuesday, determined to help others who are not as fortunate and forced to stay at the George R. Brown Convention Center.

"Around town some shops have set up donation centers," Hockett said. "They'll get big trucks to come in and take supplies to the convention center."

Hockett says it's times like these when he misses his home state of Minnesota.

"I miss the winters," he said. "We never had this in the winter."

Hockett says Minnesota nice exists in Houston as well. He says he has seen many people extending themselves to help others.

He hopes others in non-effected areas help those impacted by this tragedy.

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