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FDNY heroes rescue 86-year-old nun  from drowning in Queens after her car 
is suddenly submerged by a flash flood 
Sister Claudia  Bradshaw, 86, and two pals prayed for deliverance while 
frantically calling 911.  The water was up to Bradshaw’s neck when her prayers 
were answered — by a pair  of plucky Fire Department EMT’s.

 
 
 
 
 
 
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Anthony DelMundo for New York Daily  News
FDNY EMT Jimmy Guailacela (left), 28, and FDNY EMT Marilyn Arroyo (center)  
pose for pictures with sister Claudia Bradshaw (2nd from left), 86, Joseph  
Lawrence (right), 81, and his wife Mary Lawrence who were all rescued by 
two  FDNY EMT's after their car was submerged by flood water at Cooper Ave. 
under the  76th St. overpass in Queens on Wednesday.


 
Sister Claudia Bradshaw and her two pals, caught off guard by a flash 
flood,  were trapped in a sinking car beneath a Queens overpass Wednesday 
afternoon. 
Bradshaw, 86, prayed for deliverance, while her friends frantically called  
911. The water was up to Bradshaw’s neck when her prayers were answered — 
by a  pair of plucky Fire Department EMT’s. 
“We were praying, believe me,” Bradshaw said later. “We thought we were 
going  to drown and then all of sudden they were there to save us. God bless 
them.” 
_RELATED:  WICKED STORM CAUSES MASSIVE FLOODING IN TRI-STATE AREA_ 
(http://www.nydailynews.com/wicked-storm-massive-flooding-tri-state-area-article-1.11
37173)  
Fighting through the pelting rain into a deep puddle that quickly became 7  
feet of angry, swirling water, Marilyn Arroyo and Jimmy Guailacela pulled 
the  nun and her friends out — just before the swamped Lexus went under. 
Arroyo said they’re glad they didn’t wait for firefighters to arrive, 
which  is what they would usually do. 
“We knew the car was going and we needed to get them out,” Arroyo said. “
If  we waited, they would have drowned.” 
  
Anthony DelMundo for New York Daily News

Tow truck operator Danny Ciancio on top of a submerged vehicle that nearly  
trapped an 86-year-old nun and two friends after a flash flood.
Bradshaw, who lives in the convent at St. Margaret’s Catholic Church on 
79th  Place in Middle Village, said she was heading to a restaurant for lunch 
with old  friends around 1 p.m. when the skies went dark and the deluge 
began. 
“The rain came down like a waterfall,” said 81-year-old Joseph Laurence, 
who  divides his time between Rye Brook, N.Y., and a home in Florida. “I 
could barely  see.” 
They were driving down Cooper Ave. in Glendale when Laurence said he hit 
some  water beneath the 76th St. overpass “and the engine suddenly conked out.”
 
“I thought it was a puddle,” he said. “It turned out to be a lake.” 
Bradshaw was in the back seat with Laurence’s wife, Mary, 79. 
“We floated for a while and then the water started pouring in through the  
air-conditioner vents,” said Laurence. “It was up to our shoulders in no  
time.” 
  
Anthony DelMundo for New York Daily News
Firefighters near the scene where three people were trapped in  a car 
submerged by a flash flood.

Laurence said he was still talking to the dispatcher when he saw the EMTs  
heading their way. 
“By the time we got there, three quarters of the car was submerged,” 
Arroyo,  45, said. 
“We could hear them yelling, ‘Help us! Help us!” recalled Guailacela, 28. 
They got Bradshaw out first and Guailacela swam her to safety. Arroyo, who  
admits being a poor swimmer, said she stayed with the sinking car. Next 
they got  Laurence, who has a heart condition, out through the sun roof. And 
finally, they  rescued his wife. 
Both EMTs were relieved after their daring show of bravery. 
“This was the craziest thing I’ve ever done,” said Arroyo, a single mother 
of  five and grandmother to two. 
“God was with us,” Bradshaw  added.