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Life Saver
Posted on Mon, Dec. 26, 2005
Son is a lifesaver
He helped parents survive Katrina
By PRISCILLA FRULLA SUN HERALD
Few children have the opportunity to repay their parents the way Alan Dodge did on Aug. 29 when Hurricane Katrina engulfed both their homes on Johnson's Bayou in Pass Christian.
Dodge lived next door to his 75-year-old stepmother, Frances, and his 77-year-old father, Bryan, who is blind. Dodge's father credits his son with saving their lives multiple times during the storm.
Bryan said he and his wife lived in their home for 23 years and evacuated each time a major hurricane threatened.
"After coming home after three hurricanes with little or no damage, this time we stayed," he said.
As Katrina approached land and the bayou overflowed, Alan waded through waist-deep water to his parents' home, which was 11 feet above sea level. In a matter of minutes, Bryan and Frances' home began to fill. In churning, chest-deep water, Alan helped his parents into the attic. No sooner had they made it there when water began rushing up after them and it became apparent they would not be able to stay.
Alan broke through the attic vent and the three used cushions from patio furniture that had floated in from outside as flotation devices. He pushed his stepmother, who couldn't swim, to a tree near the home where she was able to grab on to a limb. He went back to help his father.
Bryan said by that time, the storm really began picking up, and it was a struggle for them to hang on to the tree. They found a spot where the parents could sit on one branch and hold on to another branch to keep from being blown away.
Alan had a skiff nearby, but it was tied to a fence and only the stern was visible protruding from the water. He dove under to cut the skiff loose and pulled the boat behind his parents to protect them from the wind and flying debris because it was too high in the water for the couple to climb into.
Bryan said they huddled in the tree for at least three more hours before the water began to recede.
The Dodges had not seen their Chihuahua since leaving the attic and were sure it had not survived. But once the wind and water began to abate, they found it in the high branches of another tree. Dodge's dog also alerted him to its location on a nearby roof.
"The dog's 'woof, woof' sounded like 'roof, roof.' It was telling us where it was," said Bryan.
The parents lay down in the skiff to try to recover some strength as the wind and water continued to diminish while Alan went for help. He found a medical team, but they couldn't get to the couple because a house had floated into the street and blocked vehicular access.
Alan returned to the skiff. Frances had lost her shoes in the storm, so he wrapped her feet up in his shirts and helped her and his father walk out over the piles of debris to safety.
The CableOne employee is living with relatives in Saucier and commuting to his job in Long Beach. Frances and Bryan had been staying with various family members since Aug. 29, including another son whose Bayou View home was flooded, and now have an apartment in Gulfport.
"I don't know what it is, but there must be some reason we were spared. I am so thankful every day. It truly was a miracle," Bryan said.