VANCLEAVE -- Two Jackson County deputies said it was a miracle they were able to rescue a woman and three children before their SUV went under in a flooded creek Thursday morning on Poticaw Bayou Road.
What started out as a traffic stop quickly turned into an emergency.
At about 9:30 a.m., deputy John Sigalas signaled the driver to pull over in her Dodge Durango SUV.
The driver, who the Sheriff's Department hasn't identified, told bystanders her vehicle slid on the wet grass and mud as she pulled off onto the grass shoulder, rolled down the bank and into the overflowing Moungers Creek after heavy rains.
Deputy Keith Vaughan was a few vehicles behind Sigalas and saw the incident.
"She was driving too fast. He was trying to get her to slow down," Vaughn said.
Sheriff Mike Byrd, who responded to the scene, said the deputies immediately took action.
"They stripped off their shirts and guns and went into the water and pulled them out," Byrd said.
Vaughan said he broke the rear window to reach the family. "As soon as we got the mother and children out, the vehicle went completely under water," he said.
Motorist Kevin Goff, who stopped to help, said he saw heads bobbing in the water but no vehicle. A deputy handed each child to him and went back for the others.
Chris Mars of Vancleave said the SUV was already submerged when he came upon the scene.
"I turned the heater on and got them up there (in his truck)," he said.
The woman and children remained in the truck until the ambulance arrived. They were treated for cuts and bruises, then taken to the hospital by Acadian Ambulance.
Cherie Ward, public information official for the Sheriff's Department, said the family had no serious injuries. She and others at the department were listening to the rescue on the police scanner and said, "It all happened so fast. It was scary."
About 7:30 a.m., Randall Platt, a Jackson County Fire Service firefighter, rescued a woman from her trailer off nearby Kenneth Cole Road when water rose up to the porch.
"She was fine. We just had to get her out," he said.
The area had 8 inches of rain by about 9 p.m. Wednesday, "and then it rained all night," Platt said.
Copyright 2013 - The Sun Herald
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
