Then he heard it -- the clap of the Pratt and Whitney engines coupled with the whine of the air crane's blades. W7HEU turned to look -- beyond the onlookers, beyond the crumbled houses and beyond the felled trees. Its bubble face was pointed directly at him and coming fast. But it was not the curious face that held his attention. Instead, he kept his eyes glued to something extraordinary -- a brown, circular object hanging just beneath the undercarriage of the modified body.

Closer and closer it came, rising off the water with its repetitive whipping noise growing louder and its size increasing. Finally, he threw up his arms and began to shout for joy. "A basket ... they're bringing a hot air balloon basket!"

Instantly, he pushed the speak button on his radio, "W7HEU."

"HEU, go ahead."

"We got ourselves an Angel ... a big, blue Angel!"

On an ordinary day, Heather and James would have found crossing over the Cascade Mountains amid such manageable traffic a pleasure. But as they drew nearer to Seattle, traffic markedly increased. Now, James was forced to keep his speed down to forty miles an hour and be prepared to stop at a moments notice. Even more troubling was the unusual, bumper-to-bumper onset of traffic leaving the greater Seattle area. Heather watched the dull, lifeless expressions on worried, frightened faces. Some looked agonizing.