Woman survives being swept into Mississippi River

An East Dubuque woman treaded water for almost an hour after flood waters swept the car she was driving into the Mississippi River.

It happened during last week's record rain storm.

Emily Halverson was driving on South River Road in Galena when ragging flood water swept over the road- taking her into the river.

Nearly a week after that record storm, Halverson's car remains stuck in the Mississippi River, just as the memories of what happened are stuck in her mind.

She was driving to work around 4:30 a.m. Thursday.

"I had called my supervisor and I was like, 'hey the roads are closed. I can try back roads,'" she said.

But as soon as she got to South River Road ...

"It just happened so fast that I don't know what happened," she said. "I don't know if that's when the road collapsed beneath me. "

Water filled her car, sweeping her into the river. She opened the door and swam out. Suddenly she was treading water in the middle of the Mississippi, in the middle of a downpour.

"There was a lot of different things going on in my mind, just if I was ever going to get out, if I was ever going to see my family again," Halverson said.

It was pitch black and pouring rain. In the water Halverson could barely see her hands in front of her face, but she could feel the current pulling her down river.

In her mind she began saying her goodbyes. And then ...

"A flash of lightning struck and I saw that there was a bunch of trees," she said, "so I climbed into a tree that led me to another tree and another tree and I got on land."

After more than 45 minutes in the water, she pulled herself to safety.

This river looks peaceful now, but Halverson says the power of water nearly washed her life away in a matter of minutes.