Black Hawk Crew Hoists Couple and Five Pets From RV Trapped in Colorado Floodwaters

A Colorado Army National Guard Black Hawk crew hoisted a couple and their five pets to safety after floodwaters swept around their recreational vehicle in southwest Colorado.

Footage released by the Colorado National Guard, filmed from the helicopter, shows the white RV stranded in a churning brown torrent, before the camera pans over a flood-ravaged valley littered with debris, uprooted trees and scattered belongings.Two people, three dogs and two cats were rescued in the operation using a UH-60 Black Hawk, the Guard said in a post on Saturday, October 24.

The rescue took place about 10 miles southeast of Pagosa Springs, near the Rio Blanco, on Friday afternoon, and the couple had been stranded for about 12 hours, according to local officials. Days of heavy rain from the remnants of Hurricane Trudy sent rivers across southwest Colorado surging to levels not seen in decades.