Son saves parents from Ian’s flood water with pool floats

There have been a number of stories from Hurricane Ian of people making daring rescues to save loved ones, neighbors, and even complete strangers.

This is a story of two Matts. The Matt the Ginocchio’s say they should have listened to is WINK News Chief Meteorologist Matt Devitt.

The other Matt is the Ginocchio’s son. He said he swam for an hour to get to his parents. The water was nearly up to his nose at times.

Matthew Ginocchio said getting to his parents was much harder than getting them out.

“Well, I’ve never gone swimming in a hurricane, that’s for sure,” said Ginocchio.

He swam in white-capped water for nearly an hour.

“I had a dog leash was the only rope I had. A couple times, I had to put it around a palm tree and hold on until the gust had passed,” said Ginocchio.

Thoughts of his parents pushed him forward.

“I just had a fractured hip from a bicycle accident, so I was walking with a cane, and we weren’t really getting out of here easily,” said Frank Ginocchio.

In hindsight, what would have been easier, “I should have listened to Matt, your weather man because he said, ‘get out of town,'” said Frank.

That’s because water, and a lot of it, was on its way.

“At first, I had put towels down, ha, soon the towels were floating, it raced away with the water. It was actually pouring through the trim, and as it poured through the trim, you knew you were in trouble,” said Nancy Ginocchio.

Frank and Nancy floated on their dining room table until their son Matt was able to get to them.

To get them out, the couple’s son used two pool floats.

“He pulled us with two pool floats, he had a big ducky and a swan, and one of us sat in one, and my wife sat in one, and I sat in the other, and Matt pulled us out,” said Frank.

“It was an adventure, but probably one that I wouldn’t do again if I didn’t have to,” said Matt.

Matt said if it weren’t for the two-pool floats, he is not sure how he would have got them out.