Kirk Jarrell was on the phone with his 60-year-old wife Jolene when water started entering her car. He says the line suddenly went dead after that.
MESQUITE, Texas — The worst day of Kirk Jarrell’s life was Monday.
It was the day Dallas County saw what’s being called a ‘1,000-year’ storm that flooded roadways, homes and submerged dozens of cars.
One fatality was reported during the severe weather event: 60-year-old Jolene Jarrell.
She was killed when her car was grasped by floodwaters and likely swept off the road at the LBJ Freeway service road.
Jarrell and her vehicle were discovered by her husband under Scyene Road Bridge at the East service road of Interstate 635 once waters receded.
That is the reason Monday was a nightmare for Kirk Jarrell.
“I don’t know what else to say about it. It was devastating,” Kirk Jarrell said.
“She was my best friend, and I’m going to miss her very much.”
The Jarrell family is now raising money to pay for Jolene’s funeral.
If you’d like to donate, click here.
Jarrell’s husband says the 60-year-old was dropping off a passenger Monday morning when she called him just around 8:30 AM, explaining that her car was taking on water.
“When she called me–she told me that water was coming into her car and that she was stalled,” Kirk Jarrell said. “She told me someone was pushing her from behind, and I think it might have been the water sweeping her away.”
“She told me where she was and I started heading that way. She was kind of frantic about it. Then her phone went dead, and that was the last I heard from her.”
When Jarrell’s husband arrived, Jolene’s car wasn’t visible.
“I couldn’t see her car anywhere, and the first responders told me no one had been hurt and got everyone out. I figured maybe she went with a tow truck driver because her car needed a tow,” Jarrell said.
“I walked by the bridge, and her car was upside down.”
Jarrell watched as first responders pulled his wife’s body from her vehicle. It was a tough moment for a loving husband to see someone who he had been with for roughly 30 years like that.
“It was horrible, and I don’t know what else to say about it. It was devastating,” Jarrell said.
Jarrell told WFAA that Jolene was a loving grandmother and mother. He showed a photo of Jolene with one of her grandchildren — her focus was all on her.
He said that was her grace and love in full effect.
“That was her favorite person, her granddaughter. It was a heartbreaker to tell her what happened to grandma,” Jarrell said.
“She was a very giving person. She loved her family and was great to everybody, and everyone liked her.”
Jarrell said his wife was a hard worker too. She said she worked with ABF Freight for more than ten years, was an Uber driver and worked at IHOP.
She recently had a birthday on June 5.
Days before her death, her son said she stopped to give a ride to a few folks carrying a handful of groceries home to save them the time and struggle.
That’s the woman Jarrell said he’ll remember most.
“I’m heartbroken about it all,” Jarrell said.