Photo: Nashville Fire Department via Getty Images) / Getty Images
A man and his fiancee performed a dramatic rescue of 17 people with the use of a helicopter during the catastrophic floods in the state of Tennessee .
Joel Boyers was on his way home when she received a call from a Pennsylvania lady asking for help, since the woman’s brother’s house, in Waverly, Tennessee, was under water.
“I thought: ‘ How would I feel if I told him I’m not even going to try? ‘ ”Boyers said in a interview with The Associated Press on Thursday.
FLOOD RESCUE: New video shows the moment flood victims found salvation in the form of a bright red helicopter flying in to save the day. Thank you to the Nashville pilot Joel Boyers! https://t.co/KtYOI7UEXu
📸: Trenton Curtis News Media Broadcasting Publications pic .twitter.com / YWLpYkIiEZ
– FoxNashville (@FOXNashville) August 24, 2021
Bad weather, electric fences and lots of hills were the obstacles Boyers had to cross to get to Waverly, to 96 miles from Nashville, where the heroic couple resides. “I’m the only person crazy enough to try to do that,” Joel commented in the interview.
When he got to the scene, he realized that everything was covered by brown water. Even two houses were on fire and there were vehicles embedded in the trees.
Observing the situation, Boyers began to carry everyone he saw. He told AP that there were already several boats with the same mission as the couple: save as many lives as possible .
My buddy Joel Boyers saved a lot people in the floods in Waverly, TN with his helicopter… Watch Joel in action https://t.co/XD 06 QFZzJ4 pic.twitter.com/OiLNYVF2zM
– Commander Chuck (@ CommanderChuck1) August 27, 2021
“Days before, I prayed to God so that somehow it would give meaning to my life “, revealed Boyers, who is responsible for 17 people are safe in their homes.
Boyers commented that he had already flown over natural disasters in his helicopter, but that on those occasions the police were already on the scene and there was little could do. However, he narrated that this time there were none on the ground or in the air.
More than 16 years of experience in the air and being co-owner of the company Helistar Aviation, used all the resources he had learned in those years to rescue people , as there were burning houses, fallen trees, unstable roofs and a raging river below. He had to maneuver very carefully both to get people into the helicopter and to leave them in a safe place.
According to the Humphreys County Emergency Management Agency, the flood destroyed 270 houses, 160 suffered severe damage and 20 people lost their lives .
Despite having saved 16 people, Boyers fear losing their license to fly . “I know the FAA can take away my license if they see me flying like this because all the ascents and landings were quite dangerous to tell the truth, but I felt like I was working,” he stated.
Boyers concluded that this act was not the most dangerous thing he has ever done, helping him to remain calm at all times. “The most dangerous thing I did was fly through the clouds with half my instruments turned off, but I always feel the sensation of emptiness in my stomach in these cases,” he concluded.