A FLOOD OF EMOTIONS

Trapped by a hurricane and rising waters, a devoted sister struggles to save her disabled brothers

- Corina Knoll

When the water slipped in under the door of their home in Naples, Florida, it was just a glimmer on the floor, a sign that it was time to go.

It was around noon on Wednesday, September 28 last year, and Darcy Bishop roused her two brothers who had been resting after lunch. She pulled the wheelchair up to the oldest, Russell Rochow, 66, and heaved him into it before slipping his feet into black Velcro shoes.

Her other brother, Todd Rochow, 63, was in his room, changing out of pyjamas. He could manage with a walker.

Both men had been born with cerebral palsy, and their mental development was like that of a young child.

About 10 years ago, they started showing signs of Parkinson's disease. But they found joy in their surroundings. Russell loved riding the bus and going to parks. Todd liked collecting cans at the beach and waiting for the mail carrier.

And both had girlfriends. Bishop, 61, was their lifeline, their little sister who had long felt an obligation to keep them safe.

"We've got to get going!" she shouted to Todd. She went to open the front door. It would not budge. The weight of the water on the other side had cemented it shut.

She rushed to try the door to the garage, where Todd's walker was stored. It, too, was stuck.

That's when the house the three siblings shared with their parents began to flood.

"It went from ankle-deep to knee-deep in less than five minutes," Bishop said. "I just knew that there was no way out."

As Hurricane Ian bore down on Florida, many residents who decided to stay found themselves unable to leave if they tried. For hours they were forced to fight heavy winds and attempt to escape flooding inside long-loved homes that had become frightening, deadly traps. Within days, around 100 deaths in the state would be attributed to the hurricane, many of them older residents who drowned.