A couple has reunited after a volunteer pilot, who rescued the wife, was threated with arrest if he went back to retrieve the husband.
Last Saturday, Jordan Seidhom loaded supplies into his helicopter and headed to Lake Lure to help out. He contacted controllers at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport and received permission to fly over as it was the shortest distance to where he was headed. There were no restrictions.
As he got closer to area severely damaged by the storm, he landed at an airport where he met with multiple law enforcement officers and first responders to coordinate communication channels with them and to find out what was needed and where he should go to help, QCN reported.
The former head of the Chesterfield County Sheriff’s Office narcotics unit and his son are both volunteer firefighters in a South Carolina fire department.
They rescued four women on Saturday and dropped off supplies before spending the night in a pilots' lounge at an airport. On Sunday, they lifted off to help again in the Lake Lure region.
Seidhom spotted a couple on a cliff waving frantically. They were Susan and Mike Coffey who had spent the previous two-and-a-half days in their car after watching their and their neighbors' houses crash down the steep emhankment.
While stranded, the couple would wave their arms as helicopters entered the area. But, none stopped. They used rocks to write SOS in a neighbor's driveway. But, no one saw the message, Susan said, adding they only had two bottles of water and two bags of chips during the stay in their vehicle.
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They tried to stay positive waiting to be rescued, but Mike said their concerns were growing. They wondered if they'd be found.
"We saw this little black helicopter go over. It circled and then came back," Susan recalled.
She climbed in and Jordan promised to return to get Mike.
When they got out at a command post about three minutes away, rescuers approached. "They asked 'Who are you?' Susan said.
After she explained her last few days, another firefighter said "it's our mission, our operation.'"
The firefighter, later identified as Lake Lure Assistant Chief Chris Melton, threatened to have Jordan arrested if he took off and came back with Mike. But, the pilot said he wasn't leaving his son on the cliff where he was waiting.
But, not all responders agreed with Melton's threats
The out-of-state chief and fire captain Seidhom said he encountered at the landing zone spoke with him before he took off.
“They came back over and said, ‘Hey, man, we can’t tell you to go get the victim. We can’t even ask you to go get the victim, but we can tell you if you come back with the victim, we’ll have you a designated landing spot and we’ll make sure they don’t come over here.”
Jordan said he decided to heed the warning even though it bothered him. It killed him to have to tell Mike he couldn't reunite him with his wife as he had promised.
Mike struggled to control his emotions when he described how he felt being separated from his wife. He wondered where she was, if she was safe. how would he find her.
Determined to reach her, he hiked down the cliff and eventually spotted a rescue crew near a river. He yelled, asking if they'd seen Susan. "They gave me a thumbs up."
The Michigan crew used a rope to get him across the raging river. Mike praised them for their determination and willingness to help.
He and Susan, who were reunited later, both question why someone would turn away a pilot willing to make rescues.
A city official said a safety concern led to the assistant chief's threats.
Less than 24 hours after their ordeal, incident commanders in the area requested civilian pilots to help with the rescue. The debris-ridden terrain prevented many large helicopters from landing.
Jordan returned to be part of the mission.
The couple praised Jordan and the others who've donated their time, equipment and willingness to help save people like them.
"Thank you, Jordan. Thank you."
