Trapped by floodwaters in Palm Bay, woman says strangers rescued her after social media post
منتشرشده: · بهروزرسانی: · ایران
PALM BAY, Fla – Flooding across Brevard County triggered rescues and evacuations Monday, shutting down roads and leaving some neighborhoods underwater as officials warned conditions were still dangerous heading into Election Day…
PALM BAY, Fla – Flooding across Brevard County triggered rescues and evacuations Monday, shutting down roads and leaving some neighborhoods underwater as officials warned conditions were still dangerous heading into Election Day on Tuesday.
The governor has declared a state of emergency. Brevard Public Schools will be closed again Tuesday, and officials say some polling places are being moved because of flooding.
In Palm Bay, Brittany Grant said water surged into her home near California Avenue, trapping her family inside.
“This is insane, my whole house is flooded,” Grant said in a video she shared on social media.
Grant, who has lived in the neighborhood for eight years, said she had not seen flooding like it.
She said the water rose to about two feet above her knees, forcing her and her young son, Nikoa, to climb onto the kitchen counter with their three dogs.
“Like a river outside my house, my whole house was just covered in water,” Grant said in an interview on Monday night. “There was really no way for us to get out, we were trapped on our counter.”
Grant said she called 911 three times, but no emergency resources were available. With no other option, she posted online asking for help.
The response was overwhelming.
“The community came together and saved us,” Grant said. “Like if it wasn’t for them, I don’t know how we would’ve gotten out.”
Grant said strangers responded, including one person on a paddleboard and another in a kayak.
“You guys are just amazing,” she can be heard saying on another social media video as help arrived.“My mom saw your Facebook post,” the neighbor responded.
Her son Nikoa Pastorius described the whole ordeal as frightening.
“I have anxiety, really bad anxiety and it was like just stressing me out,” he said. “It was pretty scary, and it was just terrifying, and I’m glad I got out of it.”
Grant and her son are now staying with a friend, along with their dogs.
“My faith in humanity has been restored because then there was this other couple that had a raised truck, that had messaged me that they were on the way to the house, and the kids on the paddleboard got their first, but they were waiting at the end of the driveway,” she said. “Grateful all these peple just came together. They saw me in crisis, and wanted to help.”
Utility crews with Florida Power & Light were staged nearby, but with water still covering some streets, restoration could take days in the hardest-hit areas.