A stranded 14-year-old girl named Tyler Frank was desperate to get help for herself and her family, so she asked Siri for help.
Frank, who has sickle cell anemia and was suffering a sickle cell crisis in which oxygen was not reaching parts of her body, recalled how calling 911 and asking for help on social media wasn’t helping.
“I was like, ‘Siri’s smart enough! Let me ask her!’” Tyler said. Then, she gave a simple command that got her family rescued: “Siri, call the Coast Guard.”
On August 27, Tyler woke up to find water up to her chest, and it was soon almost over her head. Tyler’s oldest brother, Joseph, 18, carried her out on his back, while her next oldest brother, Brayland, 16, carried their youngest brother, Jaquarus, 8, on his back as well.
She called the Coast Guard and explained that she was sick and afraid for her life, giving the man on the other end her location. The next afternoon, a Coast Guard helicopter arrived, and Tyler’s mother recorded the scene as the rescuer asked if anyone was sick.
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“I told him yes, I have a child with sickle cell, and she’s very sick, and I need you all to take her,” Tameko Frank said.
However, the rescuer said that he was only taking elderly people and then left the family.
“She was standing right there in front of him. And he turned around and got on the helicopter and left,” Frank said.
But Tyler tried again, and this time, the Coast Guard helicopter that answered her call the next morning took them to safety. Once more, Tameko Frank posted it on Facebook Live.
Tyler was taken to the hospital after being rescued, and while she was discharged on Friday, her family still has many obstacles ahead. She and her four brothers (15-year-old Brayveon was not at home when Harvey hit) are all staying in one Super 8 hotel room. They have no clothes but what has been donated, and they have set up a GoFundMe page as they look ahead at starting their lives over.
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