Megan Drye watched in horror as her 7-year-old son, Micah, and her parents were swept away by the floodwaters from Hurricane Helene.
“Even as I was drowning, I was praying, praying, praying,” she recounted to NBC News, reflecting on the terrifying ordeal. For what felt like an eternity, Megan, her son, and her parents clung to the roof of their family home as relentless rain pounded Asheville, North Carolina, and floodwaters surged around them.
Suddenly, the house collapsed, hurling them into the murky, unforgiving waters. Megan was the only one who survived. The last words she heard from her son were a desperate plea: “Jesus, please save me!”
Days later, she was left heartbroken, mourning the loss of Micah and her 73-year-old parents, Nora and Michael, while also expressing gratitude to God for her own survival. “There’s no way I should have survived without God and these prayers,” the 39-year-old mother said through tears in an interview on Monday.
Asheville was heavily impacted by Helene, which struck Florida as a Category 4 hurricane on September 26. The storm claimed at least 240 lives, with 117 fatalities in North Carolina, including 72 in Buncombe County, where Asheville is located.
Before the roof gave way, Drye sent photos of the rising water to her two older sisters. One of them, Jessica Turner, living in Texas, shared the images on Facebook, urging people to pray for their family. “Those prayers gave me strength,” Megan said. “I believe my parents and my son were there with me, helping lift me up.”