Courageous Meteorologist Saves Woman in Sinking Vehicle

Fox Weather’s Bob Van Dillen is being celebrated as a hero after walking through murky floodwaters during Hurricane Helene to save a woman trapped in her sinking car. 

The meteorologist was covering the deadly storm in Atlanta on Friday, Sept. 27 when he heard a woman screaming in her car and decided to help. Despite the nature of the dangerous situation, Dillen’s courageousness and quick thinking, resulted in the woman reuniting safely with her husband. 

Source: Michael Loccisano / Getty

During the rescue, Dillen, who stands at 6’1 was captured on camera walking through the water with the woman on his back. The water, which Dillen later explained was “23 feet” tall, had come up to his waistline. 

Right after saving her, Dillen immediately got back to work as anchors at the station were asking him for an update.  Confirming if they were okay, Dillen told his colleagues, “Yea we are. We put her in the car. She was cold, I gave her my shirt. Her husband is going to pick her up. The firetruck came. They’re good. Everyone’s good.”

Source: Fox Weather / Fox Weather

In the midst of his update, video shows the woman’s husband come and shake Dillens hand, thanking him for saving his wife’s life, to which Dillen responded, “Absolutely, anytime. I would do it again.”

Dillen later appeared on Fox & Friends, recounting more details that led to the rescue. He explained that after noticing the woman was stuck in the water, he called emergency personnel but decided to see if he could help before they arrived. 

After reaching her vehicle, he explained, “She was panicking. She really wasn’t making too much sense, and she was still strapped into her car seat.”

“She still had the seat buckle on, and she had her window about this much down and she’s trying to talk to me through that,” he recalled. So I’m trying to open up the door, Ainsley, and the water pressure wasn’t allowing me to do it. So I said, ‘Roll your window down.’ So she rolls it down and it allowed me to open the door. … The battery is still alive and kicking in that car. In fact, I think the engine is still on … the water itself is relatively warm. The water temperature is about 80 degrees.”

Once the pressure was “equalized” Dillen was able to open the door, get the woman’s seatbelt unbuckled and get her on his back. 

According to CBS News, Hurricane Helene has claimed the lives of 116 people across six states. About 600 other people are unaccounted for due to the disruption of communication by the storm.

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