Abigail and Dan Gleason, owners of The Black Twig restaurant in Sperryville, and their two young sons found themselves in the thick of a flooding nightmare in mid-May.
“I returned to our home in Nethers about 6 p.m. on May 13 with our two boys,” Abigail said. “The roadway was flooding and soon the Hughes River jumped its bank stranding me and my two boys.”
Abbigail and Dan Gleason with their children on the banks of the Hughes River that rose at least ten feet during the flood. (Photo/Luke Christopher)
Without power or phone service and a flooded basement, Abigail Gleason hunkered down with her sons, moving food and supplies up to the second floor. “My backup plan was to put our tent on the roof in case the flood reached the second floor,” she said.
Dan Gleason made his way home from the restaurant to check on his family. After several unsuccessful attempts to reach the house, and shouting over the roaring river to Abigail, he ended up spending the night in his car.
The next morning, Abigail, with sons in tow and packed bags, managed to evacuate over a makeshift footbridge constructed by neighbors. “The whole experience was a little scary, to say the least,” she said. “I was so proud of my boys and the support from our many neighbors who cleared the wreckage on Nethers Road.”
Abigail’s neighbors across the road, Suzanne and David Weiss, were not so fortunate. They had to wait another three days before they could leave their home. “It was epic,” said Suzanne. “Our rain gauge showed 10 inches of rain.”
