A group of South Korean tourists whose van failed to make it through harsh winter conditions in the Buffalo, New York area found refuge thanks to a helpful stranger last weekend.
Alexander Campagna, a dentist, wrote on Facebook that he received a “frantic knock on the door” in the village of Williamsville on Friday. Two men from a group of ten tourists were at the door asking for shovels to remove their vehicle stuck in front of his house.
The collision occurred during what New York Gov. Kathy Hochul described as the “blizzard of the century,” a storm that killed at least 28 people in Erie and Niagara counties in western New York.
People who died in the surrounding Buffalo area were found in snow and inside vehicles, the Associated Press reported, as snowfall totals reached 49.2 inches Monday morning at Buffalo Niagara International Airport.
The group – which was en route from Washington, DC to Niagara Falls – “seemed unaware” of the approaching storm and “ended up stranded” outside the Campaign home as conditions worsened, Yoseb said Choi, a native of Pyeongtaek, for the New York Times. .
That’s when Campagna – and his wife Andrea – stepped in to offer them a place to stay.
The couple gave the 10 tourists places to sleep, and during their unexpected weekend stay, the group watched a Buffalo Bills game and ate Korean meals together, which the Campagnas love to eat, the newspaper reported.
“It was a bit like fate,” Choi told the Times.
“We’ll never forget it,” Campagna said.
The van was still stuck on Sunday, however, the drivers took the tourists back to New York as most of the group is expected to return to South Korea this week.
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