Tragic final photo of grandparents perched on roof of flooded Asheville home before they were swept away with grandson

A tragic last photograph has emerged of grandparents sitting connected the extortion of their North Carolina location surrounding by raging floodwaters arsenic they waited for rescuers to arrive.

The Drye's were pictured by their girl Megan who on with her seven-year-old son, Micah, had clambered to the rooftop of their Asheville location arsenic the location was dilatory consumed by the tempest waters. 

The mates successful their 70s tin beryllium seen dressed successful regular clothes, wearing overgarment and a backpack with a mates of blankets for comfort. 

'They are watching 18 wheelers and cars floating by. In addition, portion of the location they're sitting connected is successful beforehand of them. They've called 911 but they aren't the lone ones needing rescue. This is decidedly a infinitesimal erstwhile religion is each you have,' wrote Megan's sister Jessica Drye.

Tragically the pair, on with their grandson drowned aft the extortion yet gave mode nary longer capable to withstand the unit of the torrent. 

Somehow Megan managed to past aft she became trapped betwixt thing and was capable to support her caput supra water. She was rescued 1 hr aboriginal and is present recovering successful intensive care. 

Detailing the brushwood connected Facebook, sister Jessica shared her sadness astatine what had happened.

'I cannot convey successful words the sorrow, heartbreak and devastation my sisters and I are going done nor ideate the symptom earlier us. Please assistance my sister who mislaid her lad up successful prayers and my different sister and myself arsenic we travel unneurotic to someway comfortableness her and get done each infinitesimal banded together.' 

The demolition and desperation crossed North Carolina successful peculiar appears to beryllium unimaginable. 

A flattened cargo instrumentality sat atop a span crossing a stream with muddy brownish water.

Overturned pontoon boats and splintered woody docks and histrion trunks covered the aboveground of a picturesque water tucked betwixt the mountains.

The North Carolina decease toll included 1 horrific communicative aft different of radical who were trapped by floodwaters successful their homes and vehicles oregon were killed by falling trees.

A courthouse information serviceman died aft being submerged wrong his truck. 

Rescuers did negociate to prevention dozens, including an babe and 2 others stuck connected the apical of a car successful Atlanta. More than 50 infirmary patients and unit successful Tennessee were plucked by chopper from the infirmary rooftop successful a daring rescue operation.

Those Western North Carolina residents who survived Helene faced a 'post-apocalyptic' scenery connected Monday, with hundreds of radical inactive missing and residents struggling amid flooded roads and a deficiency of basal services.

More than 128 deaths crossed a half-dozen states person been attributed to the almighty tempest that slammed into Florida's Big Bend portion precocious connected Thursday earlier cutting a destructive way done Georgia and into the Carolinas.

As galore arsenic 600 radical stay missing, U.S. Homeland Security advisor Liz Sherwood-Randall said astatine the White House, though she noted that the numbers could alteration arsenic responders scope much locations.

Either way, the decease toll is apt to rise, officials said.

Residents successful devastated communities recovered themselves isolated by flooded roads and a deficiency of moving water, powerfulness and compartment telephone service.

In mountainous Buncombe County, which includes the fashionable tourer destination of Asheville, 35 radical person died 

The region was acceptable to statesman distributing nutrient and h2o to residents aboriginal successful the day.

Some supplies had to beryllium airlifted to the portion with astir large routes blocked by mudslides and flooding.

'They're moving retired of state for ATVs that are helping the rescue, they're besides moving retired of state for the chainsaws,' said Colleen Burns, 58, whose location is adjacent Burnsville, successful neighboring Yancey County. 'We desperately request gas.'

Elsewhere successful Yancey, the tempest snapped century-old trees astir the location of Taylor Shelton, 44. 

It took her hubby 2 days with a chainsaw to chopped a transition done the felled trees successful their driveway and the adjacent roadworthy truthful they could thrust themselves and their 3 children retired of the darkened house.

With nary telephone service, they relied connected a neighbour who works arsenic an EMT and had a walkie-talkie to assistance them find which backmost roads retired of the mountains were passable.

'The devastation is unbelievable,' she said.

They were attempting to thrust backmost location connected Monday to prime up their canine and 2 guinea pigs and permission retired nutrient for the feline and the chickens. Their car was loaded with coffee, donuts and diapers for their neighbors.

'It looks similar 'War of the Worlds.' Very, precise large trees are down everywhere,' she said. 'We saw houses that are conscionable washed away.'

She has inactive not been capable to scope her husband's parents, who unrecorded successful the adjacent municipality of Burnsville, which was besides severely hit.

Lake Lure, astir 20 miles southeast of Asheville, was covered with floating debris from homes and businesses washed distant by upland streams that situation the lake, a video posted connected X by Charlotte City Councilman Tariq Bokhari showed.

'It's hard to picture - ne'er seen thing similar this, post-apocalyptic,' helium wrote. 'It's truthful overwhelming. You don't adjacent cognize however to fathom what betterment looks like, fto unsocial wherever to start.'

Some 1.8 cardinal homes and businesses were without powerfulness connected Monday night, according to Poweroutage.us.

'The deficiency of connection is concerning,' North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper said connected Monday successful an interrogation with CNN. 

'We cognize that determination are radical missing, and we cognize that there's going to beryllium important fatalities astatine the extremity of this and our prayers and our hearts spell retired to these families.'

Cooper, who said helium had not heard from his lad and girl successful 72 hours, added that section officials and rescue workers were performing door-to-door payment checks successful galore communities.

In Buncombe, officials said they are conducting checks of 150 'priority' households that see aged residents oregon residents with aesculapian problems.

The National Guard and exigency workers from 19 states person been deployed to help, on with Federal Emergency Management Agency personnel. 

Cooper said the rugged terrain successful the mountains of occidental North Carolina makes it astir intolerable to traverse with landslides and flooding.

'So we're depending a batch connected aerial power, helicopters with hoist capableness to get supplies in,' helium said.

President Joe Biden said helium would sojourn North Carolina aboriginal this week and whitethorn inquire Congress to instrumentality to Washington for a peculiar league to walk supplemental assistance funding.

'There's thing similar wondering, 'Is my husband, wife, son, daughter, mother, begetter alive?'' Biden said astatine the White House. 

'Many much volition stay without electricity, water, nutrient and communications, and whose homes and businesses are washed distant successful an instant. I privation them to cognize we're not leaving until the occupation is done.'

Vice President and Democratic statesmanlike campaigner Kamala Harris chopped abbreviated a run travel successful Nevada connected Monday to instrumentality portion successful briefings successful Washington connected the hurricane effect and volition sojourn the portion erstwhile doing truthful won't impede effect efforts, a White House authoritative said.

Republican statesmanlike campaigner Donald Trump traveled to Valdosta, Georgia, connected Monday to sojourn a furnishings store that was heavy damaged successful the storm.

Helene struck Florida's Gulf Coast connected Thursday nighttime arsenic a large Category 4 hurricane, triggering days of driving rainfall passim the South and destroying homes that had stood for decades.

Georgia Governor Brian Kemp said connected Monday that astatine slightest 25 radical successful his authorities had died, including a firefighter responding to exigency calls during the tempest and a parent and her 1-month-old twins who were killed by a falling tree.

Damage estimates ranged from $15 cardinal to much than $100 billion, insurers and forecasters said implicit the weekend.