‘We had to evacuate': Witnesses who saw attempted rescues in Oxford, CT share story

The community in Oxford continues to grapple with the death of two residents following devastating flooding in the town Sunday.

We spoke to the husband of one of the victims, Stephen Rostkowski, and though declining a formal interview, he remembered his wife as a nature lover, and someone who loved her job as a pet groomer.

He said her loss is profound and he will miss her dearly.

We continue to work on contacting Ethelyn Joiner’s family to see if they have anything they would like to share, but haven’t made contact at this point.

The Route 67 intersection with Old State Road No. 67 is what witnesses described as an epicenter of the chaos. Some witnessed the attempted rescue of one of the women.

Tiffany Berthold, bartender at the Boars Nest Bar and Patio, was working Sunday night.

“It was just all of a sudden watching white water rapids going all down this street, we were watching trees go by, watching buildings and structures,” Berthold said.

Water was held back as it jumped the banks of the Little River, but eventually it found its way in.

“Once the garage door went, we had to evacuate,” Berthold said.

She, along with customers, headed for higher ground. She was a witness to an attempted rescue by firefighters of one woman swept away in flood water.

“Her car started floating, the firetruck tried rescuing her, they drove into the lot, they kept hitting debris and had to pull out,” Berthold said.

“The final phone call they were screaming that the garage door broke open," said Rachel Falbo, a manager at the bar.

She was cut off by floodwater when she and her husband were attempting to make the turn onto Route 67 from their house. She was showing photo and video captured Monday morning when they were able to arrive at the business but opened the door to devastation.

“It was just devastation - mud, mud up to my ankles … coolers flipped over, the water just had its way with the bar," Falbo said.

Businesses contacted all along the Old State Road No. 67 were expressing condolences for the lives lost, but also hard at work as they begin the recovery process.

“The hope is that the federal government can step in and help some of these residents that lost their houses and these businesses that are just gone,” said Justin Harding, the owner of the Boars Nest.

He said Tuesday over 60 people have been in and out assisting in the cleanup and dig out. But without flood insurance because of his location, he anticipates a long road ahead.

“We have to start at ground zero on the whole business again,” Harding said.

But build back he plans to, and while work continues, the Boars Nest, they aren’t shy about helping out neighbors at the same time.

“We have been going to other businesses, other houses, with the machinery, helping people get up and out of their driveways, just doing the best we can,” Harding said.

The business also donated leftover food to the Oxford food pantry. In conversation with women collecting the donations, they said they need more donations as they continue to help as many families in town as they can given the dire circumstances for so many.

Across the parking lot, the Creative Starts Learning Center is also feeling the full force of the Little River.

“I had a knot in my stomach, I saw the waterline outside and I knew, I knew what was going down,” Dawn Thompson said about her first reaction when she arrived at the learning center when floodwater subsided.

She was in the same room she was cleaning Friday taking care of kids. As she cleaned, the bottom third of the wall was completely stripped down to the studs. She was scraping up drywall off the floor with a shovel.

“It’s heartbreaking, devastating,” Thompson said.

One of the owners, Ron Stasko, couldn’t get to the learning center from Stratford. He was watching the flooding from a livestream someone was running in the Boars Nest - a clean shot of the chaos he described with his business in the background.

“Unfortunately, you saw people stuck in the water and the fire department try to get to them,” Stasko said.

He was shocked by the pictures and videos that emerged of the flooding and was amazed at the speed the situation turned from haunting, to deadly.

“It escalated in we are talking a half an hour to an hour, we’re talking something no one here has ever seen before,” Stasko said.

As the cleaning continued Tuesday, his staff was pressing forward, seeking silver linings.

“We are just lucky this didn’t happen during the week while the children were here,” he said.

Thompson, though overwhelmed with how much damage there is to homes and businesses too, is already looking forward, and pressing forward, for the over 50 families they serve.

“Clean up, repair, rebuild and go again, stronger and better than ever, that’s all we can do,” Thompson said.

According to the owner, they have secured a temporary location while they rebuild at their original site.

They are seeking donations of toys, books and children’s furniture to help make the space feel like home.