Yodeling Saves Woman’s Life

Yodeling saved Judi McCay’s life.

Her home near Pleasant Hill was engulfed by the swollen Coast Fork of the Willamette River early Tuesday.

“I just kept yodeling and yodeling until they put the spotlight on me,” McCay said.

McCay, 57, hung onto a tree limb in raging waters for more than 30 minutes.

Around 3 a.m., McCay saw the blinking lights of an emergency vehicle and learned residents were being told to evacuate. Her husband, Rick McCay, headed for the barn to rescue the couple’s two horses, and Judi McCay ventured into the dark carrying several bags of personal items and her cat, Kissy.

But the waters were deep and swift, and within moments she was being swept toward a wooded area - a terror-stricken cat perched atop her head.

McCay managed to grab a tree limb. Her cat disappeared in the swirling waters.

Darl Hunt, a Pleasant Hill Fire Department volunteer, was among those summoned by McCay’s yodeling.

“It was just miraculous that we heard that cry for help,” he said.