Hurricane Helene has wreaked havoc across multiple states in America as the number of victims continues to rise.
The latest victims have been identified as Marcia and Jerry Savage, who died hugging each other as a tree fell onto their home and killed them.
Their grandson, John, was left in a panic after he heard the wind howling and branches snapping so he went upstairs to check on his grandparents who were tucked up in bed as the storm continued to roar outside of the walls of their home in South Carolina.
“We heard one snap and I remember going back there and checking on them,” the 22-year-old said of his grandparents, Marcia, 74, and Jerry, 78. “They were both fine, the dog was fine.”
But shortly after his check-in, he heard a loud “boom” coming from upstairs and soon discovered that the biggest tree surrounding their home had fallen straight on top of the two seniors, killing them instantly.
“All you could see was ceiling and tree,” he said as per AP. “I was just going through sheer panic at that point.”
John said that his grandparents were hugging as their lives were taken by the storm, adding that the family thinks it was God’s plan to take them together, rather than leaving one to suffer without the other.
“When they pulled them out of there, my grandpa apparently heard the tree snap beforehand and rolled over to try and protect my grandmother,” he said.
The two were teenage sweethearts and had been married for over 50 years.
“They loved each other to their dying day,” John added.
A GoFundMe has been set up to help with their funeral expenses.
They are survived by their son and daughter, along with four grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren, as per a report by the Independent.
Marcia and Jerry are among 150 people confirmed to be dead as Hurricane Helene, a powerful Category 4 storm when it made landfall, ripped through Florida’s Gulf Coast to Tennessee.
According to the New York Times, reports of destruction and record-level flooding stretched more than 600 miles.
Areas such as Newport, Erwin, and Boone were hit with major flooding as rivers burst their banks and spilled into residential areas. Thousands of people were told to evacuate as officials feared that things might continue to get worse as the storm continued to unfold.
Many died in circumstances just like the Savages, with trees or large pieces of debris causing their deaths, including one person who was killed in Dublin when a tree fell on his home and two other people died in Anderson County after similar incidents occurred at their property.
Emergency workers were also hit hard as many risked their lives to save others including firefighters and aid workers.
President Joe Biden and vice-president Kamala Harris have visited Georgia and North Carolina, stating that additional funding for debris removal and emergency protective measures will be put in place for the areas that have been the hardest hit.
Biden, who was in North Carolina, said that the storm would cost them billions of dollars, but added that “Congress has an obligation” to make sure states have the necessary resources to rebuild in the wake of the disaster.
Harris, who went to Georgia to hand out meals to those who have been left stranded, wanted to “personally take a look at the devastation, which is extraordinary.”
Trump also visited his home state of Florida, as well as Georgia, talking to locals and promising to do whatever it takes to get the states back on their feet again.
Our thoughts are with the victims as well as those who have been affected by this terrible tragedy.
