In Miami-Dade County on Sunday, an Instagram video showed the dramatic moment when a man flying in a paramotoring device swooped in to save a woman whose car was drowned in a canal.
Cristiano Piquet, the founder of Piquet Realty, was flying with a friend before church on October 31 when he saw a woman in a canal “holding for her life,” as he described in a video posted the day after the incident.
“Oh my God, I fell with my car in here,” the woman told Piquet in the video.
A post shared by Cristiano Piquet (@cristianopiquet)
Piquet’s about one-and-a-half-minute video captured the full sequence of events, from the moment he landed in an open field until the woman was rescued. In the footage, the woman can be heard yelling for assistance. Additionally, the footage depicted emergency rescue personnel at the location.
According to the Miami Herald, Piquet was recording his flight when an alligator’s splashing in the water drew his attention.
“As I turned back to photograph the alligator, I noticed a car submerged in the water,” Piquet explained. “As I drew closer to the vehicle, I noticed a woman on top.”
According to the Miami Herald, Piquet then decided to land his paramotor — a paraglider with an engine — in an open field and run to her aid. He then sought assistance from a neighboring man, who hauled the woman to the shore.
“Therefore, we tossed her a rope, and she was free and living,” Piquet reported to WSVN 7 News Miami. After we secured her safety and contacted 911, everything transpired so quickly.
Six fire department units responded to the incident and combed the area for additional victims. The woman was transported to the hospital, according to the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Department.
The Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Department and Piquet did not respond immediately to Insider’s requests for comment.