“This is the worst thing that has ever happened by far”
Sean Rayford/Getty
The aftermath of Hurricane Helene in Fairview, N.C.
A set of triplets say they survived Hurricane Helene‘s flooding in Fairview, N.C., by climbing onto their kitchen counter and praying as the water rose around them.
In an interview with local TV station WTVD, brothers Henri and Ian recalled how they and their sister Zoe were in their home with their cat Pumpkin as Helene ravaged western North Carolina after making landfall in Florida late on Sept. 26 and then barreling northward.
Upon seeing their surrounding property get swept away by floodwaters and the water rushing into their house at concerning speed, their “best bet was to stay inside and that’s when we climbed up on the kitchen counters,” Ian told WTVD.
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“As the water kept on rising, it started shooting through the door, the water pressure busted the door open and a whole bunch of wood started to come into the house,” he said.
“We just sat on the counter and the only thing we could do was pray,” he added. “About 30 minutes later the water started receding.”
In videos shared with WTVD, Zoe sounds panicked as the water surrounds their property.
Her car could be seen being washed away, and wood crashed into their house from a nearby lumber yard.
Related: 11 Members of the Same Family Killed During Hurricane Helene: ‘An Unimaginable Tragedy’
Sean Rayford/Getty
Aftermath of Hurricane Helene in Fairview, North Carolina
Once it was safe to go outside, the siblings say they realized the scale of the surrounding devastation.
Henri’s truck and Ian’s car were also lost in the storm, as were family antiques.
Among the few things that remained were pictures of their brother Jason, who died as a child, and a few small toy trucks that Jason played with, which Ian called “the most important thing to my dad at the moment, and this is all we could save.”
“This is the worst thing that has ever happened by far, but the Lord has continued to just bless us by far,” he said.
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The siblings’ dad, who also lives at the Fairview house with them, wasn’t home when Helene hit, which they said they were grateful for considering his medical condition.
“He had knee surgery, he could barely walk and then he was diagnosed with cancer,” Ian explained.
“I do believe if he wasn’t diagnosed with cancer, he would have been here, and I don’t think he would have made it out,” Ian said. “When we escaped, the mud was to our knees and the water would have swept him away.”
A GoFundMe has been set up for the Marlowe family to help them rebuild their lives and return to normalcy.
More than 220 people have been killed by Helene, according to officials and news outlets, and about half of the reported victims have been in North Carolina.
To learn more about how to help with relief, recovery and rebuilding efforts from Hurricane Helene, click here.
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