New England fishermen found sisters crash site on a hunch, according to a Feb. 21 Independent Record report. The fishermen were driving by, and they decided to check out a damaged tree, and that is when they found the two sisters who survived the car crash that killed their mother.
One of the sisters, 4-year-old Aryanna Huff, drug her injured 2-year-old sister Lylah Huff out of the car, and they both huddled under a blanket and waited for help after the crash that left their 26-year-old mother Jessica Marie Rath of Astoria, Oregon dead.
There were no skid marks on the road after the crash, and it was difficult to see the crash location. Even so, fishermen Kraai McClure and Scott Beutler had a gut feeling that something was wrong when they saw a gash on a tree as they were driving down State Highway 401.
McClure said,
‘"I don’t know exactly what told us to turn around, but I'm just really thankful we did."
He also reported that the two sisters were in shock when they were finally found after several hours alone in frigid temperatures after the crash. They fishermen found the sisters at 8:30 a.m. Police believe that their mother fell asleep at the wheel and crashed, which is why there were no skid marks on the road.
The fishermen who found the sisters are being hailed as heroes for acting on their hunch and finding the sisters. However, they believe that 4-year-old Aryanna Huff is the true hero of this story. McClure said,
"She saved her sister. She was sharp enough. I don’t know how she did it or anything else, but something was watching over those little girls. It was amazing that the little 4-year-old — I have a little 4-year-old, too, she’s almost 5 — was able to get her little sister out and do that. It just blows my mind that she could do that in that situation. I don’t know if she waited until morning, when they could see, but, you know, it just makes me want to cry."
It is truly amazing that the 4-year-old was aware enough to be able to pull her sister out of the car and stay warm under a blanket. Not that many children of that age would be able to do something like that. Even so, the fishermen who found the sisters by acting on their hunch should also be commended for helping rescue these girls.
Comments