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Boone Fire Rescues Woman in Flooded Parking Lot Near Hampton Body Shop

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Public safety personnel look on as a rescue takes place to help a woman surrounded by rushing waters near her car in a parking lot near the Boone Mall. Photos by Ken Ketchie

By Jesse Wood

A woman was rescued on Wednesday morning in a parking lot near the Boone Mall due to flooding.

She was found standing near her vehicle, where water had risen to the top of the tires on her vehicle.

With water rushing around her, she opted to stand near her vehicle until help arrived. With the old adage of better to be safe than sorry, this was a wise move. Donning yellow helmets and red safety jackets, rescuers with the Boone Fire Department marched through the waters to help the woman safely to dry land.

Mike Teague of the Boone Fire Department said that the water rescue was the only weather-related incident that Boone Fire Department personnel encountered. Teague said that he young woman was treated for hypothermic conditions have being rescued.

More than 2 inches of rain fell in Boone before 10 a.m., and a number of roads in Boone have since closed due to flooding.

The Boone Police Department reported that Boone Heights Drive, Boone Docks Street, Bamboo Road near the airport, Deerfield Road near the Moose Lodge and the mall entrance are all closed as of 11 a.m. With a flood warning in effect until 3:45 p.m. and in light of the rescue and road closures, the Boone Police Department urged folks to “turn around don’t drown” on social media.

Boone Police Department spokesman Shane Robbins reiterated that message and urged the public to be cautious while the rains keep up.

“And certainly don’t go around any barricades that are up,” Robbins said.

Teague also mentioned that the public should think ahead when parking in low-lying areas.

See the rescue unfold in the images below.

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