It was an hour after midnight when a strong surge of floodwater broke open the front door and rushed inside the home of Elaine Hendrickson-Parry. Naturally, everyone including their dog Luna, was asleep inside when the raging current started sweeping in through the open door. Recent heavy rainfall and severe storms resulted in serious flooding, and in this case, a tumultuous current that was capable of sweeping away canine companions.
Once awakened, Elaine and her 88-year-old-father immediately did their best to wade through the rising water and out of their shared Oklahoma home. Together, they and their 12-year-old Catahoula, Luna, made their way out the front door, and onto their porch. It was then that the door slammed closed, locking them outside without the key.
As Elaine did her best to get herself to safety, her dad made his way to their car for the spare key. But the water was rising so quickly and rushing by so fast that poor Luna didn’t know what to do. While Elaine was able to climb up onto a nearby rock wall, Luna’s paws couldn’t quite reach and she was swept away by the rushing water.
“She hit the current that was hitting the wall and swooshed it around the house, and she was gone,” shared Elaine.
The poor pup wasn’t able to climb to safety before she was carried away by the turbulent tide. Meanwhile, Elaine and her father remained trapped high up on the rock wall, surrounded by the rushing, rising water. In the blink of an eye, the water went from shin to thigh-high and continued to rise. They were left waiting up on that wall, wondering and praying that Luna was able to swim to safety.
For hours, Elaine and her father were forced to stand on the wall and wait before they were able to climb down and comb the area for their furry family member. Once the water receded, they finally felt it was safe enough to scale back down and start searching for their beloved Luna. They combed all 11 acres of their property before posting flyers and asking friends and family to post her pretty picture all over Facebook. Not only is Luna a senior, but she also has a hard time hearing and seeing. They weren’t sure whether or not they would ever see her again.
But then, right around 11 pm (an entire 44 hours after they had last seen her), Elaine heard a faint bark outside. Luna was home.
“About 11 p.m. I was in the living room and I heard ‘woof!’ Really faint and soft, and I thought that couldn’t be her,” recalled Elaine.
While Luna had miraculously made her way home, almost everything inside was completely ruined. Mud and mold had taken over their home, and Elaine and her father were doing their best to clean and contain the mess. But despite the fact that her circumstances may seem dire to others, Elaine remained smiling and was keen to express her deep gratitude. Luna was home and everyone was okay, what more did she need? She even offered her extremely positive outlook on life.
“Asking God for grace is like standing in a river of clear, clean water, and asking for a drink of water, cuz it’s all around you, and so ever since then I’ve said the same prayer that that woman always said, which is ‘Thank you God for everything, I have no complaints,” said Elaine.
While we may not know exactly how Luna was able to make her way home, I think we can all agree that it was nothing short of a miracle. You can check out the video and full story, below.
Featured Image: Screenshot
Toledo, United States.
