Alone in the sky, pilot and fiancee save 17 in Tenn. flood

By TRAVIS LOLLER
Associated Press

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Nashville helicopter pilot Joel Boyers had prayed for God to show him his life had meaning just days before the phone call came. On Saturday morning, a desperate woman was seeking someone to help her brother and his family who were stranded on a rooftop in Waverly, Tennessee, amid rising floodwaters. The only helicopter in the sky, Boyers maneuvered around power lines, balanced his skids on sloped rooftops, and hovered over floodwaters, rescuing 17 people in total. Boyers says it felt great to use his skills for something so important. He says he has received lots of thanks from the people he helped, but they also helped him.