(WSVN) - She was all alone for days and calling for help, but no one heard her, and this South Florida woman feared she wouldn’t survive. But an unlikely hero rescued her when she was “Trapped and Terrified.” 7’s Brandon Beyer has this special assignment report.
Marilyn Cahill, homeowner: “I didn’t know if anyone would ever find me. ”
She thought she would never see the light of day again.
Marilyn Cahill: “The light in my garage went out, and I’d already finished taking all the groceries out of the trunk of my car when I tripped, and I just went flying.”
Seventy-four-year-old Marilyn Cahill landed on the floor of her garage and slipped under her car’s front bumper.
She couldn’t get a good enough grip to pull herself up, and she couldn’t reach her cellphone, so she screamed for help.
Marilyn Cahill: “But because the garage door was closed, no one could hear me. None of my neighbors.”
Marilyn thought someone would eventually hear her, but no one did.
Marilyn Cahill: “Three days, maybe even a little bit longer. I tried moving and tried getting up.”
She had no food or water, and the garage was brutally hot. At one point, Marilyn started to face the reality she might not make it.
Marilyn: “It started occurring to me.”
Dannielle Vizzini, hairstylist: “So I just kind of had a feeling that something wasn’t right.”
Dannielle Vizzini has been doing Marilyn’s hair for years.
When she didn’t show up for her regular appointment, Dannielle started to worry.
Dannielle Vizzini: “I had my assistant call her a couple times, and she wasn’t answering, so I said, ‘Just keep calling. Keep calling.'”
All the calls to Marilyn’s cell went to voice mail, so Dannielle decided to reach out to the Broward Sheriff’s Office, but there was little deputies could do because she didn’t know where Marilyn lived.
Nancy Robeson, salon client: “I just went in to have my hair done, and I could tell that Dani was very distracted.”
Nancy Robeson was at the salon and overheard the frantic phone calls.
When she saw Dannielle wasn’t getting anywhere, she called her son and asked him if he could use his computer skills to track Marilyn down.
Nancy Robeson: “He’s good at that stuff. He’ll find ya.”
He didn’t take long to find an address.
Brad Robeson, Nancy’s son: “You plug in enough stuff, and I said, ‘I got a good enough guess.'”
Danielle called BSO again and begged them to find her client.
Dannielle Vizzini: “Please, please break inside. She’s not out and about. She’s home. She’s a homebody. Please go in there.”
When deputies arrived, they heard Marilyn’s screams for help.
Marilyn Cahill: “They were able to move my car and get to me and take me to the hospital.”
She was dehydrated and in pain.
Marilyn Cahill: “But nothing was broken.”
It took weeks for Marilyn to recover, but she’s feeling better now and has a brand-new medical alert necklace to feel safer in her home. She is also feeling grateful to Dannielle.
Marilyn Cahill: “If it hadn’t been for her, God knows where I would have been.”
Marilyn is ready to get back to the salon, and see the hair stylist who saved her life.
Copyright 2024 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.