
As Hurricane Harvey continues to ravage Texas, one of many images of hope has also emerged from the destruction.
A photo posted online by the Harris County Sheriff's Office, the largest in the state of Texas, has gone viral.
HCSO deputies are out in the Blackhorse subdivision still working high water rescues. #Harvey https://t.co/gBFwSaoPjo— HCSOTexas (@HCSOTexas) 1503861738
It shows Sheriff's Deputy R. Johnson rescuing two children from flooding.
One Twitter user @FishBlanc had a brilliant suggestion.
I have an idea for replacing one of those statues... https://t.co/v3zZzb1yFe— Fishful Thinking (@Fishful Thinking) 1503868366
The pitch for a new statue, commemorating Deputy Johnson has the tacit support of 34,000 retweets and over 100,000 likes on Twitter.
According to the Sherriff's Office, Johnson has been invited to appear on ABC's Goodmorning America on Monday.
The 'statues' idea is a reference to a question asked by those opposed to the removal of Confederate statutes from American soil.
One riposte from those who would like to keep the statues is a question:
If not these historical figures, then who should you build a statue for?
Answer:
Deputy Johnson.
Memorials to emergency service personnel do exist in several parts of the United States, in particular those first responders who came to the aid of civillians during the 9/11 attacks.
Why not build more?
Some Twitter users have already mocked up what the statue could resemble.
@FishBlanc done. https://t.co/ERryrNnTQl— Stephen (@Stephen) 1503891224
@FishBlanc DONE. #Houston #HurricaneHarvey #Heroes / cc: @RedDogT3 @RiskReversal @BleuZ00m @jimiuorio @jlpratt4… https://t.co/EAzc003jBN— Tony Ritter (@Tony Ritter) 1503888918
Harris County contains Houston, the country's fourth largest city.
Thousands of emergency calls have been made since category four hurricane made landfall in Texas.
indy100 has contacted Harris County Sheriff's Office for comment.