‘We are hurt’: Family of 3 children who disappeared in Miss. River hoping for good news

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - A terrifying night turned into a tearful morning as family members began to realize their little ones may not come home.

Dozens of family members stayed near the Algiers levee hoping for good news from crews searching overnight and into the morning. Dive teams also combed the river bottom.

Nedra Berry says they had just buried another family member the night before when she got a call from her brother.

“My brother called me screaming, ‘Nedra I need you, my babies are in the water, I can’t get to my babies...come.’ I’ve never heard a man cry out for his children the way my brother cried out for his children...never,” Berry said.

They say this was the first time they let 14-year-old Brandy Wilson, her 8-year-old sister Ally Berry Wilson, and a 15-year-old male friend venture off from home believing they were playing near the river when they slipped in.

“This was a freak accident. God knows I wish it would’ve never happened,” Berry said.

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As the family waited through the rain, the girl’s mother, Octavia Wilson, rushed to the levee hoping for a better outcome.

“They said that my 14-year-old went under first and then her friend tried to save her and my 8-year-old tried to help her sister and went under...I need them,” said Wilson. “I ran here...my kids are not out here, they still haven’t found my children. Only thing I have is my 8-year-old slipper that...one of her slippers that was on her feet.”

The family says their hearts are breaking.

“This is the hardest thing my family has ever had to deal with, to bury two of my nieces at one time. I just hope that we can come back from it. I know they’re not breathing in that water, I just hope they can get their bodies out of there so we can do the proper things to give them a proper service...that’s the only hope we have,” said Sharon Johnson, the aunt of the two girls.

They say they’ll lean on each other and their family’s faith as they wait for Ally and Brandy to come home.

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