Four days before Hurricane Helene’s rushing waters swept her house off its foundation, Leslie Worth sat in a cardiologist’s office, planning for surgery that would remedy her life-threatening heart arrhythmia.
But before she could be treated, what weather experts have called a once-in-a-century storm, surprised the Grassy Creek community in Ashe County. Fast-rising water reached historic levels, claiming her home and trapping her inside the riverfront two-story.
“I still think about that day a lot,” said Worth, 68, who, with husband Phil Worth, 70, is rebuilding on land along the New River, just a few hundred yards from where their home stood.
Her rescuer, Eddie Hunnell, can’t forget that day either.
Bridal party to the rescue
On Sept. 27, 2024, the day that Helene assaulted the 27,000-resident county, Hunnell, 58, and his family were staying at the neighboring River House Inn on Old Field Creek Road for his son’s wedding.
Felled trees from the high winds and staggering rainfall would block guests from Friday night’s rehearsal dinner at the inn, so Hunnell and his sons scrambled that afternoon, using chainsaws to cut through fallen treetops. They tried to clear a path, but tree after tree crashed down around them. The storm grew more fierce.
At about 2:30 p.m., Hunnell and his son’s anxious wedding party members watched as the river rose about four feet in 15 minutes.
“It was coming so fast. We just gave up on trying to clear the road because it was flooded,” Hunnell said.
Worths were in trouble
Hunnell got word from the innkeeper that the Worths were about 300 yards upstream and in trouble.
Hunnell is a former competitive swimmer and lifeguard who manned rafts as an angler on the Colorado River for years. “I felt like I was the most qualified to do this,” he said recently from his Holly Springs home.
Leslie Worth spent 40 minutes alone in ankle-deep water in an upstairs bedroom.
“I had to shout to her five times because the water was so loud. ‘If the house starts to move, you jump.’ I had already seen four houses float down the river that day, and all you could see of them was the rooftops,” Hunnell said.
The storm destroyed or significantly damaged more than 300 of Ashe County’s homes and businesses. The storm surge was estimated to have topped 30 feet, 10 feet above the previous record crest, according to emergency management officials.
“I didn’t want the house to come down on her and kill her as it was falling apart,” said Hunnell, who this year was awarded the Carnegie Hero Medal for his courage.
Ultimately, Hunnell dove into the swift water with only a life jacket.
One shot to save her
By Hunnell’s calculations, the water he was about to cross was moving at nearly nine m.p.h. Once Leslie jumped, he’d have one shot to intercept her as she floated downstream toward faster water.
“I didn’t know Leslie,” Hunnell said. “I didn’t know if she would trust me or be brave enough to jump.”
Leslie’s decision was made for her.
Water rose quickly from her ankles to her waistline. She spilled out of her window into the mud-swirled current, debris and her life’s belongings floating around her.
“I trusted him,” she said earlier this month, reflecting on the storm as the anniversary approached.
“I was short of breath in the water, without the energy or the strength to swim or do much,” Leslie said.
“I grabbed her by the back of the life jacket collar,” Hunnell said. “And I told her to kick her legs and keep them close to the surface. I told her, ‘I’ve got you.'”
Hunnell knew the water downstream narrowed and moved much faster. Beyond that section, a hazardous stretch of river nearly filled with downed trees waited that would be almost impossible to dodge.
“So, I swam like hell until we got to the shore,” said Hunnell.
Lifesaving bonds
Leslie said that remarkable half-hour bonded the Hunnell and Worth families in wonderful ways. They broke bread together the night of the rescue when the Worths joined in the hurricane-style rehearsal dinner for Hunnell’s son at the inn.
“It’s like they are new family members — a new aunt and uncle,” said Hunnell, who, with the help of several others, has raised thousands of dollars to help finance the Worths’ new home.
Every Carnegie medal is engraved with a Bible verse from the Gospel of John: “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”
The families have another interesting link. Hunnell’s wife’s relatives, the Ballou family, helped settle the Grassy Creek community and owned the land along Old Field Creek Road and the home that’s now the inn from the 1700s through the 1980s. Her family members still populate the area.
And through the years, Leslie provided nursing care to several Ballou family members.
The current owners of the inn donated land close by to the Worths on which to rebuild.
“I think we are seeing a resiliency here,” Leslie said of the county. “If it hadn’t been for our community, family, friends … People came to help from all over the state, from South Carolina, everywhere.”
She added, “Our community has been so supportive, just amazing to us. We wouldn’t be as far along or where we are emotionally without all that support.”
Like many storm survivors who lost homes, the Worths have been able to stay in vacant properties owned by friends this past year.
On a recent autumn afternoon, with their golden retriever Murphy, 11, in tow, the Worths visited the spot where they said goodbye to their home. Leslie said she lost all her belongings and heirlooms, save a couple of vehicles and a tractor.
It’s bittersweet. They say they still love their mighty river. It’s a constant, with power the Worths respect but don’t resent.
“We’re here and we see the river every day. There are times I dream about it … that day,” Leslie said. “It wasn’t the river’s fault. The river’s still lovely and peaceful.”
sspear@rockinghamnow.com
(336) 349-4331, ext. 6140
@SpearSusie_RCN
Stay up-to-date on what’s happening
Receive the latest in local entertainment news in your inbox weekly!
* I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
Susan Spear
Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily!
Your notification has been saved.
There was a problem saving your notification.
{{description}}
Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.
Followed notifications
Please log in to use this feature
Log In
Don’t have an account? Sign Up Today