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Don't call Dorothy Hoenig lucky. She considers herself blessed.
The 71-year-old Mesquite, Texas, grandmother had her prayers answered Wednesday morning after she accidentally drove her sport utility vehicle into a flooded intersection.
Hoenig turned off Interstate 635 onto Park Central during her morning commute. It was dark and she didn't think anything about her commute because it's the same path she's traveled for years, she said.
But the overnight rain had turned the intersection into a small lake.
"I didn't have time to think of anything else," Hoenig said. "Next thing I knew, I was swept out."
Hoenig said she immediately noticed water seeping into her car. She grabbed her phone, called 911 and immediately started thinking about her grandson.
"'God's in control' -- that's what I was thinking, sitting there in that car this morning," she said.
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Hoenig, who said she can't swim and hates water, was rescued by Dallas firefighters a few minutes later.
"I was just taking deep breathes and thanking the Lord that I had a fireman there," she said.
But don't expect Hoenig to take a day off to count her blessings.
She rented a pickup truck and plans to travel the same road to work on Thursday morning.
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ummmm, did she have her headlights on? How can you not see a literal wall of water ahead of you? Is good eyesight still a prerequisite to drive, or has AARP successfully lobbied against that?
Typical SUV driver. They think SUV stands for SUPER UBER VEHICLE. I have never seen one that slows down in bad weather. That's how they get in trouble like Derrick Thomas from the Kansas City Chiefs.
"It was dark and she didn't think anything about her commute "
If it were someone younger, half of the internet would be here posting about stupid young'uns and "send her the bill". But since it's a nice old lady...
It is good she was in a SUV not a small car. Otherwise she would have drowned for sure.
That area is notorious for flooding in heavy rain and she should have know better, no excuses
What on Earth was an elderly woman doing driving an SUV? Why was her license not taken away? "Accidentally" drove into a flood? Who then let her rent a truck from them? Did they insist she get the insurance after learning of her plans to drive right back into it? I am outraged that this idiot was not handed a bus pass.
Would you like the government to step in and start revoking people's licenses once they reach a certain age - no matter their health? Sounds like "freedom" to me.
Excuse me...........>>>I am older than this woman and do not consider myself "elderly." I also drive an SUV. And it sounds like she was driving to work. Doesn't sound too elderly to me. Take her license away? Surely you have got to be kidding.
I guess in your mind, there aren't any "young" drivers out there who get themselves into predicaments.
It must be nice to be young, beautiful and perfect.
Rule number 6 from the drivers road manual. It clearly states "The older the driver the bigger the car they must drive."
'God's in control'...Right. She's just lucky she was able to call 911 and to have somebody respond as quickly as they did.
If she had learned to swim or drive a car she would have been in control!
Oh my gosh. Hot in Phoenix, get off your high horse! I bet she drives better than you do. I've met some older folks who drive better in SUV's than small, compact cars. She made a mistake like so many people do! Even young twenty something's have made mistakes like this. Don't go chopping it up to age! I risked it once, and this before I hit 25!
@ Dan T, no excuse huh? Hope you never make a mistake. Because you know, people will say, "Well that's not excuse"
@ Alex, how about the young couple who drove into a creek? Or the woman who drove into a lake, what almost ten years ago in North Carolina? They weren't old. You'd be amazed at how the water can appear. I was driving home from the hospital not too long ago and I saw water on the road. I didn't think it was that deep. The moment I hit it though I felt my heart catch in my throat as I skimmed across it. Had I slammed on my breaks, I would have lost control and went into the river. I'm not old, I'm 30. Sometimes you just don't think, and the darkness it does play tricks on your eyes. I hope you never have to drive in the dark, when it's rained. God help you if you do.
It really is sad that so many people are quick to call her names and cast stones at the woman based on her age. I'm glad she made it out alive and God was in control. Her faith kept her calm, and level headed. Some people I know would have tried their best to escape and that wouldn't really help them if the current was strong. Bless her and the good people who came to her rescue.
@HotinPhoenix......................>>FYI...................>I have been driving for 57 years. I have no traffic tickets (not even a parking ticket). I have been involved in one accident which was the other driver's fault. I have not ridden over small children, dogs, cats, and other assorted critters. and I am out and about constantly.
How's your driving record??????????
I have been driving since I was 16 and I'm now 70. Just like I drive to work everyday, this lady may have been doing the same. Some of us don't just sit around doing nothing!
Which means she should have been able to notice the change in the road and not driven into the water.
Time perhaps for this 71 year old to hang up the car keys?
Get a life.
Really, the same thing happens here in the midwest. " oh it's not that deep " Kids from 16 to 30 think that most of the time. Oh it wont happen to me. This lady was in cruise control becasue she drove it everyday. Do you realize more accidents happen in commutes where drivers are comfortable than if they were on vacation. that s becasue they are more alert when they dont know the area.
NOW, put that in your pipe and smoke it...