Trapped in the Attic With Time Running Out

CBN.com —John and Barbara Nickell and their two sons had lived in their Pensacola home for more than eight years. They experienced plenty of thunderstorms in that time, but felt safe knowing their home was in an area that never flooded. This time, however, the rain kept pouring down and soon water was seeping into their home, getting deeper and deeper.

"That night, it started raining, and it started raining hard," says Barbara. "We didn't really think nothing else of it, other than it was a thunderstorm. I turn around, five minutes later it was three foot, then about five more minutes it was six foot. Literally it was about that fast. I started to panic. It was terrifying."

With six feet of water in their home and more coming in, John led his family into the attic.

"So we got up into the attic and I looked around and saw all the insulation, and I have asthma, and I said, 'John what's going to happen when the water rises, you know, we can't get out,'" remembers Barbara.

"I said, 'don't worry I'll get us out of here,'" remembers John. "And I grabbed a 2x4 and started pounding on the roof until I broke a hole in it."

Soon after breaking out of their home through the roof, the Nickells were rescued by boat. Nothing could have prepared them for what they saw when they returned the next day.

"It's a disaster area, it looks like a warzone," says Barbara. "Everything is in shambles. We lost everything. When the water was coming through, it just took everything out. We have nothing."

With no flood insurance and no extra money to pay for help, the Nickells got to work trying to salvage their house and personal belongings. After two full days they were exhausted, and nowhere near finished.

That's when volunteers from Operation Blessing arrived, with a team of workers to help the Nickells tear out their drywall, clean out their home, and repair the hole in their roof - all free of charge.

"Operation Blessing has been such a help," says Barbara. "We would have given up if it wasn't for them coming out here to help us."

"We were so exhausted," says John. "It would have taken us months to do what Operation Blessing did in just a few days."

"Oh, you don't know how much of a help this has been," says Barbara. "I am so much in debt to everyone who has come out to help us."

CBN Partners provide practical help for families in need. This often opens hearts to receive the message of Christ. If you are not a partner, please join with us today. For a small investment of $20 a month, you can bring help and a message of hope to people throughout the world. Become a member today!