CHESAPEAKE, Va. — The rain came down in buckets on Thursday. It flooded streets, stranded drivers, and caused widespread damage.
All of that constant rain also impacted first responders. Chesapeake firefighters came to the rescue of an 83-year-old trapped in her car.
Flooded roads in Chesapeake made afternoon commutes home impossible for neighbors. From South Norfolk to Fentress, no spot stayed dry.
Shannon Simons had to stop her car about a mile from her house. So did most of her neighbors.
“This is not normal here, we never park on the street,” Simons said. “So for them to all be parked on the street there is a lot of water down there.”
She lives off Margaret Drive near Fentress Airfield. Hours earlier, the water trapped her 83-year-old mother-in-law Jean Towles inside her car.
“The dispatcher told her to just stay in her car,” Simons said. “She was worried [that] if she opened the door, if water would come in.”
When towing services couldn’t get there, Towles got a lift from Chesapeake Fire Station 6.
“Water was about up to the door jam,” said Senior Firefighter Brad Hennis. “It stalled out.”
Crews had to use a firetruck to take her to her driveway. Hennis said the water was deeper at the house, so a piggyback ride finished the job.
“We decided she was going to get on my back, and I carried her up into her front yard, out of the water,” Hennis said.
Floodwaters stuck around into the evening.
“You got kids back there playing and stuff, but you can’t take a small car back there,” said tow truck driver Art Gray. “It’s not even safe for any big truck to go back there.”
We couldn’t get our news unit through the water to chat with Towles ourselves, but Simons said she’s happy and dry, all thanks to Station 6.
“They were awesome,” Simons said. “I want to do a huge thank you to them getting her home safe.”
Chesapeake Fire Department officials said that was their only water rescue for the day.