DEAR EDITOR:

On Sept. 21, my brother-in-law woke at 6 a.m. and saw water surrounding the house above the level of the back deck. He and my sister were staying with me helping my Mom (81 years old) recover from a hip replacement the week before. He and I immediately went outside to move the two cars up to the cul-de-sac from the driveway carport area.

We went back to the house to make plans to evacuate and couldn't get through the fast moving water. We couldn't stand up in it. (It took the shoes right off my feet!)

My dogs came outside and were instantly swept away in the water. (Luckily, they are both strong and managed to swim out of the woods at a different place.)

We immediately called 911 to help get Mom, Julia and her dog out of the house.

I called 911 four different times and got four different locations: not surprising considering the mess everyone was waking up to and my home's location near three counties.

I had no idea how blessed I was to have the fourth location be the Austell Fire Department. They came very quickly but were not trained in swift-water rescue. I was trying not to panic as repeated attempts to get a boat were denied because they were all in use.

The firefighters were trying to decide what course of action to take when a volunteer fireman who was trained in swift-water rescue came racing up in his pickup truck with a boat in the back.

All the firemen worked very well together and put themselves in danger to save the lives of my family members.

By the time they reached Mom, her bed was starting to float. My sister was walking around in chest-high water. My brother-in-law and I were helplessly standing by outside.

The fire chief was one of the first on the scene and put himself in harm's way to get them safely out of the house.

My family cannot begin to express our gratitude for what the men of the Austell Fire Department did for our family members that day.

We will be forever grateful and thank God there are men like this who willingly put their own safety aside to save the lives of others; whether they are paid for it or not.

I'm sorry I don't know the names of these men. As soon as they were done, they had to go to another house in my subdivision to save others who were stranded.

Debra A. Deavers
Powder Springs