Heroic Family Dog Locates 11-Year-Old Boy Buried Under Rubble After Helene Mudslide

ASHEVILLE, N.C. — An extraordinary tale of survival has emerged after a family dog played a crucial role in rescuing an 11-year-old boy from a mudslide, triggered by Hurricane Helene.

Jamie Parker and his dog Tucker were at home with family when disaster struck. “I probably would have died if it wasn’t for Tucker,” Jamie recounted, now recovering in the Charlotte area at Atrium Health Levine Children’s Jeff Gordon Children’s Center.

As the hurricane unleashed its fury, Jamie and his younger sister Jemma were on the couch. “Then the house mudslided, and I face-planted into a wall,” Jamie remembered. His grandmother, Donna Johns, witnessed the chaos as walls and debris surged toward them. “I thought, ‘What?’” she recalled.

The mudslide left Jamie buried under debris, approximately 12 feet deep. Panic set in as he lost contact with his family. “I thought I was all alone…I thought my family had died,” Jamie said, as he lay in darkness, hearing nothing but the sound of water dripping around him.

Feeling helpless, he called out for help, but his voice was drowned out by the storm. In a twist of fate, Tucker emerged as the unexpected hero. “Tucker was above me, and he was barking,” Jamie stated. His persistent barking eventually caught the attention of his grandfather, Michael Johns, who had managed to find his granddaughter but couldn’t locate Jamie.

“I couldn’t find him, didn’t know where he was,” Michael said, realizing that Tucker’s behavior was more than mere barking; he was trying to signal Jamie’s location. Thanks to the dog’s unwavering loyalty, firefighters located Jamie and used a chainsaw to free him.

Following the ordeal, Jamie was transported to Atrium Health Cabarrus for treatment, where one of the nurses took it upon herself to care for Tucker, ensuring the family’s bond remained intact amidst the trauma. Jamie’s recovery has been complicated by a serious condition stemming from the mudslide, but his spirits remain high.

Despite the destruction of their home, which Donna had worked tirelessly to pay off over the years, the family is grateful for their survival and each other. “I’ve been paying for it for over 25 years, and I’m just $4,000 short of paying it off,” she lamented, reflecting on their devastating loss.

As the family navigates the uncertainties ahead, they find solace in the knowledge that they still have each other—and Tucker, who was adopted as a last-minute rescue from a shelter years ago. “He was the last dog there,” Jamie recalled fondly. “When he saw us he ran right up to us. And he rescued me.”

Local authorities are now rallying support for the family, collaborating with Habitat for Humanity to raise funds for a new home. The journey toward recovery continues, but one thing is certain: the bond between Jamie and Tucker is a testament to the resilience of love and loyalty in the face of tragedy.