Family of Four Rescued by Bystanders After Car Was Swept Away in Texas Floods
Rescuers saved a family that was involved in a freak road accident as they tried to escape a series of storms and tornadoes that ripped through the Midwest over the weekend. A miracle happened when all the family members survived the ordeal, including an infant who had been lifeless when help came.
The accident happened Saturday as Philip Ocheltree drove himself, his wife Emily and their two young children away from their home in Myrtle Springs, Texas. It was supposed to have been only a 12-minute drive to a safer location. The couple was in the front seat while 1-and-a-half-year-old Addyson and four-month-old Marshall were strapped onto the back seat of the truck.
Emily, 21, recalled that it was too late in the day when their vehicle hydroplaned off the highway, rolling three times before flipping in the middle of a ditch with four feet of fast-moving water. The rapidly rising floodwaters surrounding the vehicle made it difficult to open the doors.
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Passersby were drawn to the truck that lay belly up, and soon, it was surrounded by volunteers trying to pull the family members out. They first retrieved Marshall, who wasn't breathing, Daily Mail reported. Tom Mitchell thought the baby wouldn't make it as he performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
A woman was heard praying on the background. "Dear Jesus, please let this baby breathe. In the name of Jesus, give him breath, Lord. In the name of Jesus, breathe in the Lord," she allegedly uttered. Suddenly, a man exclaimed: "She is breathing! Come on baby, you can do it."
While some people worked on Marshall, the others struggled against the fast moving water to save the rest of the family. Addy was rushed to safety and is now in stable condition at Dallas Children's Medical Center while Marshall was released from the hospital. "I'm very thankful," Emily told the good Samaritans. "God bless you and thank you for risking your lives to save ours," she went on to say.
Philip, 25, is thankful now that his baby is safe. "She is stable and breathing more and more on her own but it's all up to her as to when she is ready to wake up see everyone," he said. "Please keep my little bug in your prayers. I can't thank you all enough who came into the water and saved my children. You're a blessing, thank you all so much," he continued.
