A pregnant North Carolina woman managed to survive Hurricane Helene's onslaught after she clung to a mattress for over eight hours until she was rescued. Emily Russell said that she was at her childhood home last week in Swannanoa, east of Asheville in Buncombe County when Helene made landfall in the US. According to Russell, she was a home alone when she realized that her home was flooding.
"I just really just thought I was going to drown in my own house," Russell described to NBC affiliate WRAL-TV . "It was literally like I was stuck on an island, and I just didn't know what to do, so I was leaving the house at that point." According to the woman, as the water level increased, she saw several cars and RVs float by — that's when part of the house she was in fell down.
"When you start hearing that it's almost like a movie, and then the front door, the water pushed it in, and it pushed in the back door, and within 30 seconds [water] went from the ground to neck level," Russell said. The woman told the outlet that she and her dog managed to paddle to a nearby mattress and stay afloat until help arrived.
"It's like you go from the scariest feeling and place to almost peaceful because you were already so scared, and your body is being cold from being in the water," Russell said. "And you're getting sore from just shaking, from being in the water, and it's just like your body almost just goes numb."
According to the woman, she was saved by her husband who wasn't able to arrive home until 6pm that evening. "The minute I saw him, I just I thought 'this is the only chance to get out,'" Russell said. "And so me and the dog took off down the front yard, but the currents were so strong that I only made it maybe 10 feet, and I had to yell to them, 'I can't walk anymore or it's going to take me.'"
Russell told the outlet that she considers herself extremely fortunate as she knows that many people are currently suffering heartbreak. Speaking a bit more with the outlet Russell admitted that she has no idea what she and her husband are gonna do when their baby comes as they are unsure if they will have jobs to go back to.
Sadly, not everyone was as fortunate as the Russells. One family was left s hattered after a woman's parents and nephew were killed by the swollen waters despite pleas on social media. The 7-year-old boy and his grandparents were found to have drowned in Ashville, North Carolina .
"My family is currently on the roof of their house in Asheville, NC with nothing but the clothes on their back and one working phone," read a post on Facebook by Jessica Turner. "My parents, in their 70s, my sister and 7-year-old nephew have lost everything. They are watching 18-wheelers and cars floating by. In addition, part of the house they’re sitting on is in front of them."
The post went on to inform readers that the boy's mother went down to help her parents but through a series of events — including the house they were using for shelter collapsing — found herself unable to help her parents. the woman later revealed that the boy's body had been found about a quarter mile from where they fell into the water and her father's body a few days ago.
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