Flood rescue — Upton first responders rescue two people and dog

An Upton volunteer firefighter and three emergency medical technicians became heroes after they successfully rescued two individuals and a dog trapped in flood waters on U.S. Highway 116 North on the morning of July 6. 

In spite of the fact that he had no previous flood rescue training, firefighter Ty Kennedy, who has volunteered for the Upton department for 21 months, used knowledge he acquired after the Texas floods to rescue the trio from the trapped waters. 

“I try to self-train with online video about random things,” Kennedy said in a statement to the News Letter Journal. “I had actually been watching a couple videos independent study after the flooding in Texas started, so I knew what not to do more than what exactly to do.”

Thankfully for John Marshall and his passenger — who both escaped the ordeal unharmed — Kennedy had watched those videos and he was able to execute the rescue. 

Marshall told the News Letter Journal that the rescue began when the couple’s car came over a hill in a solid downpour with limited visibility. They ran into a “virtual river.”

“We got pushed to the shoulder and then the tires caught, but the water was still pushing us further down into the ditch,” he said. “The water was up to the door handle and on our car. It was very scary.” 

With no cell reception, Marshall said, they used the SOS feature on their phones to reach EMS. 

“It actually worked and they came out very quickly,” he said. 

According to Kennedy, the fire department and ambulance were dispatched at 3:05 a.m. to a vehicle stuck in flood waters. Kennedy and three EMTs — Brianna Wilder, Courtney Huckins and Kelly Wozney — responded and were en route by 3:15 a.m. after meeting at the fire hall to get an ambulance. 

At 3:23 a.m., the ambulance arrived on scene.

“We surveyed the scene, and I reported to dispatch that we had a single vehicle on its wheels but swept off the side of the road just after MM (mile marker) 20 on 116 north,” Kennedy said. “After surveying the scene, we determined immediate action needed to be taken to get the people out of the car.” 

The crew then drove into the water down the center of the road, making verbal contact with the victims. He said they asked if Marshall and his passenger were OK before continuing through the roughly 2 feet of water on the roadway. 

“We told the driver we would turn around and be right back to get them out,” Kennedy said. “We continued through the water to the other side where we could safely turn around, then proceeded directly in the water facing the same way as the victims car.” 

The ambulance, he said, was positioned with its passenger side window next to the driver’s side window on the car, getting the ambulance as close to the car as possible. Kennedy said that the ambulance would act as a water break for the “much lighter car.” 

According to Kennedy, when he arrived on the scene, he knew the car weighed at most 4,000 pounds, while the ambulance weighed about 14,000. 

“So, being a redneck math guy, I knew if the water was not carrying their vehicle away anymore, I was more than likely safe,” he said. “I had fear for my friend (Marshall) and his companion that was in the car, but I was confident that as long as the roadway held up and didn’t wash out, my EMTs and I were safe. Having no idea if the road was good under the water level, we just drove very slowly across the then probably 400-foot-wide waterway.” 

With knowledge he gained from studying the flooding in Texas, Kennedy said, he knew to look for rippled water or places that might have been slow pools or dips in the water that might have meant a hole or deep spot in the water. 

He said his No. 1 priority is always the safety of himself and the crew with him but that he was 99% confident that “me and my crew were safe in that moment.” 

With 3 to 5 inches between the windows — close enough so the victims could not fall and become pinned — the crew began the extraction of the passenger before they rescued the medium sized dog. 

“With the water pushing on the ambulance, I needed to reposition it before we moved the driver,” he said. “We got turned slightly at an angle so we could move the driver out the window of his vehicle into the open door of the ambulance and safely inside.”

Once all three were rescued, the ambulance drove out of the flooding to dry land. When contacting dispatch to communicate the rescue, Kennedy said, he also made the call to close the highway until the water receded. 

The actions of Kennedy, Marshall said, likely saved their lives. 

“They are heroes and we appreciate each and every one of them for coming to rescue us,” he said. “We are very lucky to have such a great volunteer fire department and EMS in our small town.” 

One of the EMTs, Wilder, also credited Kennedy for the successful rescue. 

“A vehicle had been swept off the road and was nearly submerged. Myself, the other EMTs, and our firefighter/EMS driver Ty were absolutely stunned — but Ty didn’t hesitate for a second,” she said. “Without blinking, Ty took charge.”

“This was a moment that reminded us all of how quickly things can escalate — and how vital it is to stay calm, prepared and ready for anything. Ty’s bravery, fast thinking and selfless action made all the difference that day. He was the true hero of this rescue and our team is beyond proud to work alongside him,” Wilder said. “Wyoming and Mother Nature will always keep us on our toes — but it’s moments like this that show what teamwork, training and courage really look like.”

Leading up to the flood, Mother Nature dropped 3 to 4 inches of rainfall that night, according to Aaron Woodward, warning coordination meteorologist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/National Weather Service.

At first, Gilbert Nelson, Weston County emergency management coordinator, thought the flooding could have been caused by a reservoir or dam break, but that was not the case. 

“It was just a lot of rain in a short period of time. I had the state engineer’s office come and check the dams and reservoirs and none of them had breaked or overflowed, which was a surprise to me,” Nelson said. “The area on Highway 116 just happened to be in a low basin area and with that amount of rain it caused some pretty good flooding.” 

He noted that he received reports of anywhere from 3.31 to 5 inches of rain from two different storms Saturday night and early Sunday morning. 

In addition to the flooding on U.S. Highway 16, Nelson said, both Green Road and Skull Creek Road have experienced damage to the roadways. On Green Mountain Road, rain also contributed to structural damage of a bridge. 

Jim Hansen, superintendent at Weston County Road and Bridge, confirmed the damage.
“We had a bridge washout on Green Mountain Road and had to close a portion of that road until repairs can be made. Once the water in the creek channel recedes and that dries up a bit, we will have a better idea of what we need to do to fix it,” he said. “Water got in behind the wing wall and underneath the concrete footer on the south side of the bridge, so it won’t be a quick fix.”

Additionally, Hansen confirmed numerous washouts on Green Mountain Road, Skull Creek Road and Dry Creek. These washouts, he said, will only require a little blade work and possibly some replacement gravel. 

Hansen added that minor washouts were seen on Barton Road, Materi Road and the Materi Cut Across.