Connecting Great People with Great Coaches
Through numerous Miracles, superhuman efforts, amazing courage, brilliant thinking, personal sacrifices, remarkable generosity by neighbors and first responders taking care of others, extreme strong wills to live, and strong faiths in God, all 7 lives were saved. There are hundreds of other similar stories of survival, and unfortunately hundreds more where people perished.
Hurricane Ian was Devastating!
Hurricane Ian was the perfect storm that caused maximum destruction to Fort Myers, Florida and surrounding areas on September 27 and 28, 2022. Everything that could to go wrong, went wrong.
Hurricane Ian inflicted a double whammy on properties in Fort Myers, that forced people to take extremely drastic actions just to survive, while suffering massive damages to their homes, vehicles, properties and personal belongings. Hurricane Ian pounded the area with winds of over 150 MPH and huge amounts of rain for over 10 hours creating considerable roof leaks and more, but also dumped a Surge of salty muddy trash filled flood waters topping 20 feet from the Gulf at the same time that few people expected and even fewer prepared for. Records show it was one of if not the most disastrous hurricanes in hundreds of years.
This Video shows the power of both the sustained winds of over 150 mph and the 12 to 20 foot surges of nasty salt water that imposed serious destruction over a period of approximately 10-12 hours nearby on Estero Island. Please note the height of the 3 skinny palm trees in the foreground, and the height of the stairs of the red building in the background behind the 3 palm trees at the beginning of the video. Then watch what happens to both, especially the red house.
Video showing the wind power and flood surges of Hurricane Ian before during and after.
The video shows a close representation of the conditions that the families endured that I attempted to describe in the following true life story. They felt similar powerful waves with countless trash and debris, and suffered the same high winds, and the massive amounts of water over a long period of time as shown in the video
The 2 families described lived in their low-lying single-story homes in Fort Myers for over 40 years in an older exclusive neighborhood with numerous huge oak trees covering their one acre properties. Both houses received over 5 feet of flood waters from the canal that is directly connected to the Gulf, the source of the surge flood waters.
John’s Remarkable Story
John was a 69-year-old man who lived alone with serious back problems requiring a walker and has undergone massive radioactive and chemotherapy treatments for his rare throat cancer. His house sits on a one-acre lot covered with massive trees and bushes. He went to bed at about 10:30 AM relaxed after hearing from the National Weather Service that Hurricane Ian was headed away from Fort Myers towards Tampa, and took a pain pill for his back and fell sleep.
He awoke in his specialty built high bed at dusk with about 6-10 inches of water covering his body. Grabbing the only things he could reach, his cell phone and cane and clad only in his skivvies with no shoes he stumbled, crawled, swam, tripped and struggled through about 5 feet of muddy toxic water inside his house over floating furniture, broken glass, and many unknown objects below his feet in the dark to find safety. Yet, he was blocked by overturned furniture, and refrigerator at the exit doors. Somehow, he clambered over, through and around everything to reach his garage to get into his Tundra Truck for safety. But the garage door was closed, and he realized he had to open it otherwise he would be entombed there.
Story of family of 6 and 1 pooch
At the same time about 640 feet away from John in another older low-lying one story house 3 lots away situated deep in a huge lot of over 2.5 acres sheltered by large trees were grandmother Susan age 90 who was very much an invalid, more so than John, her grandsons, Spencer and Zachariah ages 33 and 31, Spencer’s daughter, Athena, who turned 6 on the day of the Hurricane, his 9-month-old daughter, Nova, Spencer’s girlfriend Brittany, and their 9 pound family Shorkie puppy named Daisy. They too received the brunt of over 5 feet of high waters. The waters overwhelmed them, such that they knew they would drown unless they did something drastic. There was no place safe on their property. And the winds were too powerful to stay outside. Their vehicles were too low, and they couldn’t count on being safe by trying to get everyone into the garage attic.
They knew the house across the street was built up on a much higher foundation, and they decided to go check it out and ask their neighbor for a safe and dry place to escape.
So, Zachariah climbed, swam and struggled over and through about 320 feet of over 3 feet of infested dirty waters filled with hidden unknown obstacles while being pummeled by tree limbs, and leaves, huge palm fronds, heavy rains and other unknown objects from the very loud hurricane winds with gusts measuring from 130-150 mph to the house across the street. He found no one home. He struggled back through the same 320 feet of flowing waters and debris filled winds to his house to report in.
Then Zachariah and Spencer trekked back over with a crowbar and Athena on Spencer’s shoulders. By now the waters had risen to over 4 feet. Spencer is only 5 feet 5 inches tall and he has a bad back with 7 herniated discs, 4 needing to be replaced taking a super human effort to make the trip. During this trek they heard a loud Crack and saw “3 large trees” begin to fall right on them. But another Miracle occurred saving their lives where several smaller oak trees blocked all 3 falling trees from hitting them. This scared them to death, especially Athena. Spencer kept telling Athena to keep looking forward, we will make it. All Athena could say was OK, OK. One misstep into the waters would have been disastrous for all three of them.
They safely reached the front door of the house. They broke in and found dry safety for Athena and hopefully the rest his family if they could find a way to transport them through the rainy debris filled wind and rising waters to this safe house. Spencer called his neighbor Larry, who was at another location, to tell him he broke in and Larry was very gracious and generous; encouraging Spencer and his entire family to use everything in the house they wanted for their safety and survival. Access to this house across the street turned out to be a huge Miracle.
Spencer struggled back to get Nova and Brittany, while Zachariah stayed in the safe house with Athena.
Upon being faced with the problem of transporting Nova, the baby, to safety he chose a ingenious method right out of the Bible that worked. He carefully placed Nova in a Yeti cooler with the top on to protect her from the flying debris and rain but checked on her 4 times to allow her to breath. Nova was laughing and giggling the whole time thinking they were playing the Peak a Boo game.
God provided numerous Miracles during the middle of the intense destruction of Hurricane Ian. If it had not been for the 320 foot closer proximity of the safety of neighbor’s house, the next closest higher level safe house was over 1,040 feet away, the odds were terrible that everyone would have survived. One Miracle. And if it had not been for the lower oak trees blocking the 3 falling larger trees, Spencer and Athena would have been crushed. Another Miracle. And if it had not been for Susan screaming “Let me die! Save yourselves” John would not have heard them, and they would not have heard John. 2 more Miracles. There were no others out in the hurricane at that time to hear or save John and he would have certainly perished in place. And if it had not been for the trained first responder Firemen arriving at the exact right time to immediately revive John and take him to safety, he would not have made it. One More Miracle.
Unfortunately, Susan passed away 2 weeks later. Yet, she saved John’s life before she passed.
Thank you, Susan Mumme!