A family have been paying their heartbreaking tributes as a seven-year-old boy and his grandparents were swept away by floods in Asheville.
Megan Drye, along with her parents and seven-year-old son, Micah, found themselves surrounded by floodwaters at their North Carolina home.
They are one of many families who have been impacted by Hurricane Helene as it brings torrential rain and high winds.
According to The Daily Mail, Megan, her parents, and her young son climbed to the roof of their home in a last-ditch effort to escape the rising waters.
Megan’s sister, Jessica Drye Turner, took to Facebook to share the family’s terrifying ordeal, posting photos of her loved ones stranded on the roof and describing how they witnessed the disaster unfold around them.
“Watching 18 wheelers and cars floating by” was part of the heartbreaking scene, she recounted on their behalf.
One of the images showed Megan’s parents, both in their 70s, surrounded by blankets as they waited for help.
Tragically, moments after the photo was taken, the roof collapsed under the pressure of the floodwaters. Megan’s parents and her young son, Micah, were swept away and sadly drowned.
Megan miraculously survived, having become wedged in debris, according to her sister.
Following the tragic death of Micah and Megan’s parents, tributes have poured in.
Turner said: “I will say, prayers have definitely carried us thus far (and will continue to do so). I feel a bit guilty bc I’m so at peace with things. We will see them again one day and there’s nothing that could entice them to come back after being with Jesus.”
Turner shared that she and her other sister, Heather, drove overnight to reach Megan, disregarding warnings that travel was “prohibited in Western North Carolina” due to the dangerous conditions.
On Monday, Turner provided another devastating update, revealing that Micah’s body had been found about a quarter-mile from where his mother was rescued.
“That was and still is a gut-wrenching moment. First hearing that. He was such a perfect little boy. He wanted to be a superhero. And now he is,” she wrote.
Heather has since started a GoFundMe page to support the grieving mother. The fundraiser, titled “For Megan Drye, our miracle,” aims to provide assistance as Megan faces the unimaginable loss of her parents and child.
“She has survived the unimaginable and lost absolutely everything. The support of others will carry her and encourage her to keep taking one breath, one step, and one day at a time,” the GoFundMe description reads.
“We are living in the hope and peace that they are with Jesus, and we will see our parents and Micah again one day.”
As of this writing, more than $75,000 has been raised.
Comments on Turner’s post read: “Prayers for your family. We are in Port Charlotte, Florida & luckily we are fortunate that we aren’t flooded. Please keep us posted on their situation.”
Another well-wisher said: ” I am so sorry they are going through this, my thought and prayers are with you and your family.”
Whitney Elizabeth, a resident of Asheville, posted: “My heart breaks for Megan who lost her 7 year old son Micah, and both parents after their roof collapsed from underneath them while waiting on emergency efforts from Hurricane Helene. This is an unimaginable loss to our Erwin neighbors and sister community.
“Sending endless prayers out to Megan Drye along with her two sisters Heather Kephart, and Jessica Drye Turner.”
Hurricane Helene has wreaked havoc across the southeastern United States, leaving a trail of destruction in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.
The storm, which made landfall late Thursday, is responsible for over 130 deaths, with officials warning that the toll may continue to rise as floodwaters recede and rescue teams reach remote areas, per the New York Post.