Through tears and shock, 27-year-old Julian Ryan’s family members said the father, brother, and fiancé died a hero.
INGRAM, Texas — Christinia Wilson and her fiancé, Julian Ryan, were at home in Ingram when the devastating floodwaters started to rise along the Guadalupe River in the early morning hours on Friday.
They lived at their house near the river with their children and Ryan’s mother.
Everything happened fast. Trees were thrown like toothpicks, and water quickly rose, leaving families with little time to comprehend what was happening.
When the water started to rise, Ryan sprang into action — those actions ended up being the last of his life.
Through tears and shock, the 27-year-old’s family members said the father, brother, and fiancé died a hero.
“He died a hero, and that will never go unnoticed,” Ryan’s sister, Connie Salas, said.
Wilson said that within 20 minutes, the water was up to their knees in the house.
“It just started pouring in, and we had to fight the door to get it closed to make sure not too much got in. We went back to the room and started calling 911,” Wilson said.
That’s when Wilson said her fiancé punched out a window to try to get her, their children, and his mother to safety.
“It severed his artery in his arm and almost cut it clean off,” she said.
Wilson said they kept calling 911, but no one could get to them in time to save him.
“By 6 (a.m.), he looked at me and the kids and my mother-in-law and said, ‘I’m sorry, I’m not going to make it. I love y’all,” Wilson said.
She said his body wasn’t recovered until hours later — when the water receded.
Now, loved ones are left with only memories of the man they call a hero.
“He is the hero in this story,” Salas said.
They’re now left questioning the preparations and response to the catastrophic flooding.
“When they said my brother was dying, they should have went to him first. That’s how I see it,” Joseph Rounsley said.
Ryan’s best friend remembered his buddy as a gentle soul.
“He’s the kindest person I’ve ever met in my life, and I’ll forever love him no matter what,” Kris Roberts said.
Now, Wilson, Salas, Rounsley and Roberts stand together, saying more needs to be implemented to avoid anything like this from ever happening again. They believe flood sirens could have saved lives.
“Everybody would’ve been worried — what’s that noise?” Wilson said. “We would have left. We would have gone anywhere else. We had so many places that were safe.”
The family has asked for help to get through the tragedy. Click here to donate to their GoFundMe account.
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