They held on for their lives as flood waters rushed past them.
Two parents and their four children were seen on top of their partially submerged SUV in Maricopa, Arizona, during a monsoon storm last week.
A video by the Arizona Department of Public Safety shows the dangerous rescue as it unfolds.
One by one, each child was taken aboard a rescue helicopter. The Pinal County Sheriff’s Office said the children were aged 11 months, 2, 4 and 8.
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The video shows the helicopter hovering over the vehicle as the family huddles together on the roof of the SUV. In the recording, you hear a crew member descend onto the vehicle before handing the children, one by one, to a crew member hanging on the side of the helicopter.
“I have the baby in my hands,” said one crew member handing the 11-month-year-old to a member inside the helicopter. “Baby is inside. Ready for the second one,” the crew member said.
At first, crews had trouble finding the vehicle.
"They were actually pushed downstream with the water," said Thunderbird Fire District Chief Allen Allcott, one of the agencies that responded.
From the ground, Chief Allcott watched the air rescue happen. His crew used chainsaws to get to the remote area. He had seven firefighters downstream in case one of the family members fell into the murky and fast-moving water.
"In a matter of seconds, you will travel a long way," Chief Allcott said.
In the end, all six family members were rescued successfully and evaluated by first responders. Chief Allcott said the driver thought they could make it through the flood. "They make that choice that they think the vehicle they are in will be able to make it, but sometimes they are wrong," Allcott said.
The rescue happened in the area of Warren and Val Vista on Sept. 21. It was the second flood rescue crew that responded that night during the storm.
Several areas in the state, including this one, were under a flash flood warning, according to National Weather Service Phoenix.
Flooding happens frequently in the desert, according to the Maricopa local government flooding brochure. Three types of storms trigger flooding in Maricopa County: tropical storm remnants, winter rains and summer monsoons.
Flash floods result from storm runoff from local or distant mountainous areas moving quickly through normally dry washes and riverbeds. Flash floods are fast-moving and often short-lived.
State Route 238, which travels from Maricopa to Gila Bend, was also closed due to flooding concerns. Still, 12News saw multiple vehicles ignore the signs and drive through.
If those drivers were to have been swept up in the flood waters and rescued, they may have been cited for what's called the "Stupid Motorist Law," which says drivers would have to pay for their rescue if they ignored warning signs and barricades.
While it seems these types of situations happen often, the Arizona DPS said it's rarely used. Numbers dating back to 2017 show only two drivers have received citations, and eight others have received warnings.
In this recent Maricopa incident, Allcott said there were signs posted on the road saying it was closed. However, he said from the direction the family was driving in, there were no signs on that side.
A spokesperson for the Pinal County Sheriff's Office said no citations or charges were given to the driver.
12News contributed to this report.
