A North Carolina woman died of a suspected heart attack shortly after Hurricane Helenehit, her family said.
Shirley Rotolo, 55, of Weaverville, died on Saturday, Sept. 28, per a published obituary. Her husband, Renato Rotolo, told NBC affiliate WRAL that his wife had a heart attack early that morning.
“We went to bed, and I thought she was having a nightmare at 2 a.m.,” Renato recalled, per the outlet. “I went to the other room. I tried to make a phone call to 911 [and] the emergency line; nothing. I went back, and we felt there was no pulse already.”
He also told WRAL that he tried to get Shirley to the hospital, but fallen trees and damaged roads caused by Helene made it difficult for them to pass until it was too late.
Renato believed the stress from the storm took a toll on his wife, telling WRAL that “it all really got to her.”
According to her obituary, Shirley was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and grew up in Brooklyn, N.Y., before moving to Weaverville, which is about 10 miles north of Asheville, one of the areas hardest hit by Helene. Shirley’s daughter, Nausica, told USA Todaythat her mother loved Asheville.
“She always said it was the place where she had the most friends,” Nausica said. “She loved her job there. She was happy there and I think it was just overwhelming for her. I strongly believe that if this hurricane had not happened that my mother would still be here.”
Shirley had been a teacher for over 27 years — most recently at Odyssey Community School, where she taught kindergarten and French, per her obituary. Additionally, Shirley authored two children’s books.
“Everyone who knew Shirley knew how much she loved to make art, write, and tend to her garden,” read the obituary, adding that she “will forever be remembered for being kind, generous, and loving. Family, friends, and students will live on with the care, knowledge, positivity, and strength that she has bestowed upon them.”
Shirley is survived by husband Renato and her three children, including Nausica, the obituary noted.
A GoFundMe was launched to raise money to pay for Shirley’s funeral expenses and the repairs to her family’s home.
In a statement posted to the fundraiser, the family said, “We are in denial, our mother is our home and we lost her and at the same time watched our home town be wiped away by the hurricane. The horror of this last weekend will stay with us forever.”
They added, “Our mother is a magical woman, passionate, strong-willed, and inspiring, with the best sense of humor, always making us laugh and finding time to be playful and full of joy. The pain and loneliness we feel is indescribable, her shoes feel impossible to fill. She is [a] superwoman and going on without her will be the hardest thing any of us will ever have to do. She will be forever missed.”
