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A Nashville-based helicopter pilot and his fiancee helped rescue stranded victims from the deadly flooding that swept through Middle Tennessee last weekend.
Joel Boyers and his fiancee Melody Among were on their way home to celebrate Among earning her pilot's license on Saturday (August 21) morning when Boyers got a call about a man and his daughters trapped on the roof of their home after floodwaters rushed through Waverly, AP reports. They immediately set to work, flying toward the town devastated by heavy rains and avoiding the hills and high-voltage power lines leading their way.
"As soon as I popped over the ridge, it was nothing but tan raging water below me," Boyers said. "There were two houses that were on fire. There were cars in trees. There was tons of debris. Any way debris could get caught, it was. I knew no one was going to be able to swim in that."
As Among acted as co-pilot, alerting him of power lines and taking control at times, they saw other rescuers on boats and even on jet skis working to save trapped residents. In total, Boyers and Among rescued 17 people.
"I literally prayed just days before this that God would give me some meaning in my life," he said, "and then I end up getting this call."
The efforts he and Among went to the rescue the victims of the catastrophic flooding will have a lasting impact on both of them.
"Her and I will be bonded to those people for life."