Family dog aids in rescue of 11-year-old owner after Helene mudslide in western North Carolina

BREVARD, N.C. – A family dog who was once rescued from an animal shelter returned the favor by helping his owner be rescued from a 12-foot pile of debris after a mudslide .

Jamie Parker, 11, was at his home near Asheville , North Carolina , when a mudslide caused by Hurricane Helene left him trapped under his home in a pile of debris.

His dog , Tucker, didn't leave his side, barking to alert rescuers of Parker's location under the debris. Because of Tucker's persistence, the boy was saved.

"Everything just started shaking, and then I just face-planted," Parker said. He said he didn't get hurt, other than some cuts, which the doctors treated when he was taken to the hospital after his rescue.

"I could hear Tucker," Parker said. "And I could hear my sister and my grandma."

Michael Johns, Parker's grandpa, said the family adopted Tucker right before he was about to be euthanized at an animal shelter. "The kids took their birthday money and bought the dog," Michael said.

Parker's grandma, Donna Johns, weighed in on her experience. "We were just sitting there. It was raining and windy. We had electricity, we had food, we're kind of up high a little bit, so we thought, 'Well, you know, it'd have to be really bad to flood up there,'" she said. "We never thought anything about a mudslide."

Donna said Parker and his sister, Jemma Bailey, were home with her and her husband when the mudslide happened. "The walls just started moving," she said. Donna said her leg was trapped during the mudslide, but she was able to get out and was rescued quickly.

"The whole house was knocked off the foundation and rolled down the hill with us in there," she said.

"It was devastating," Donna said, recalling a visit to their home after the mudslide. "Our things were under that house. We can't even really get to our things. We've lost everything."

Donna said she and her family had lived on the property for 31 years. "There's 31 years worth of memories on that property," she said.

The family is currently staying in a temporary home in Brevard , North Carolina, while they figure out next steps. She said the family has to decide if they want to rebuild their property after the rubble from their home is cleaned up.

Tucker is currently not staying with his family while they figure out where to go next, but he is safe and sound.