North Carolina Man Saves Cooler of Wife's Breastmilk by Hauling It Over Raging Waters in Hurricane Helene Aftermath (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

Josh Johnson and Graham Avery putting their coolers in Hurricane Helene floodwaters.Photo:Emily Singleton

Emily Singleton

In a TikTok that’s amassed more than 1 million views, Emily Singleton shares footage of what she describes as, “Appalachian folks makeshifting ways to save breastmilk for their babies during the flood,” as waters rage following Hurricane Helene’s destruction.

Speaking to PEOPLE, Singleton says the video was taken in Roaring Creek, North Carolina, and shows two of her close friends, Josh Johnson and Graham Avery, as they work to preserve the breastmilk of Graham’s wife, Logan.

“The day after the storm, Logan and Graham were trying to figure out how to save her breastmilk and escape to her parents house that had a generator,” Singleton says. “The bridge out of their house had became inaccessible due to extremely high water, and they had to shimmy across fallen trees to get out.”

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

She continues: “This was obviously not a viable option to safely get the heavy cooler out, packed with frozen meats from their then-thawing freezer, to keep the breastmilk cold”

So, once Graham got to the other side, he and his brother-in-law, Josh, gathered all the rope they could and pulled the coolers across the now-raging Roaring Creek.

As Singleton explains, not only did the two use the creek as a makeshift highway to get the milk from one side to the other — but it also temporarily helped keep the milk cold, an option Singleton says others could consider if they find themselves without power.

“If you are ever in this scenario without a generator … creeks and rivers and springs can keep milk cold for a few days, which is what all of our Mamaws and Papaws had to do growing up,” Singleton says.

(TheCenters for Disease Control and Preventionrecommends freshly-expressed breastmilk be stored at room temperature (77°F or colder) for up to 4 hours; in the refrigerator for up to 4 days; or in the freezer for about 6 months.)

Singleton adds that she and her family “have been without electricity for 11 days.”

She notes that some areas in her county are seeing the electricity come back on — " but because the roads are so destroyed, linemen are having difficulty getting to many places."

Helene was a Category 4 hurricane when it made landfall, and was the deadliest hurricane to hit the mainland U.S. since Katrina in 2005. About half the victims were in North Carolina, per the Associated Press.

To learn more about how to help with relief, recovery and rebuilding efforts from Hurricane Helene,click here.

source: people.com