ER nurse, 3-year-old son lose everything when home collapses in flooding
OXFORD, Conn. (WFSB/Gray News) - An emergency room nurse says she and her 3-year-old son lost everything when their home collapsed in historic flooding in Connecticut.
Randi Marcucio, an ER nurse and single mother, is trying to stay positive after her home collapsed Sunday in Oxford. Water was pouring into the home as flash flooding rushed downhill, and the wooden supporting posts were taken out, WFSB reports.
Trying to act fast on little sleep, Marcucio was able to get out safely, check on neighbors and make it to a safe place. She is glad her 3-year-old son, Riley, was not home at the time, but the family lost nearly all of their possessions.
“It is hard to look at. ... I saw my son growing up here, so it’s hard because it makes me think of our forever home and where he was supposed to be raised. And it’s gone,” Marcucio said.
The family did not have flood insurance, so none of the damage was covered.
“I have my son. I have my family, and we’ll just move forward,” Marcucio said. “I’m alive. My son’s alive. We didn’t lose any life on the hill. My neighbors are OK. ... Everything else can be replaced and fixed, so we are OK.”
As she works to recover from the tragedy, Marcucio has a great team of family, friends and neighbors supporting her and Riley. Her friends are trying to rescue any belongings they can find, like knickknacks, a children’s book and a precious photo album from Marcucio’s parents’ wedding.
Popular radio host Chaz from 99-1 WPLR lives nearby and has been promoting Marcucio’s GoFundMe, encouraging listeners to donate if they can help her rebuild her life. People are also dropping off food, water and clothes for both the mother and her son.
“Our listeners are the most generous group of individuals I’ve ever come across in my life. They always come over the hill like the calvary any time we come across someone who needs this kind of help. They’ve been tremendous,” Chaz said.
Marcucio and her son had only lived at the home for less than a couple years when it collapsed, according to GoFundMe. The page has raised more than $122,000 to help the family.
As much as a foot of rain fell Sunday and early Monday in some parts of western Connecticut, according to the Associated Press.
Also in Oxford, authorities say two women were found dead Monday after they were swept away by floodwaters along Little River on Sunday. Troopers identified them as 65-year-old Ethelyn Joiner and 71-year-old Audrey Rostkowski.
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