Mario Castro from Arizona was planning to travel to El Paso, Texas, to be with his mother for his birthday. When he arrived in Las Cruces, New Mexico, he called his mother to let her know he had about an hour and a half left. But sadly, Castro and his 14-year-old dog Zoe never made it to Texas.
Castro missed his exit, so he took the next route to try to get back. He ended up on a dirt road, and his car hit a rock and got stuck. Castro and Zoe had no choice but to get out of the car and seek help, but they didn’t have much luck.
Stuck for 6 days
The senior man and dog are in the middle of nowhere, so they walk for a while, hoping to find someone to help them. They hiked through rocky terrain in temperatures reaching over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. They struggled for six days in the extreme heat.
“It was very difficult and I was almost dying,” Castro said.. “I’ll be very thirsty, I’ll be dehydrated, but then I’ll find a watering hole, get some water and rehydrate again and then go outside again.”
Castro is sure he doesn’t have much time left. When he looked at Zoe, her eyes were already sunken in, so he knew she couldn’t live much longer either. The two find a place under the shade of a tree to rest.
RELATED: Loyal Labrador Saves Life of Missing Woman With Dementia
As a last-ditch effort, Castro started making an SOS sign with fire, but he only made it halfway through the S when a miracle happened. A white truck drove past, so Castro desperately tried to get the driver’s attention.
Strangers save their lives
A mechanic named Frank Martinez was driving a white van when he spotted Castro and Zoe. At first, he was hesitant to stop because sometimes, illegal activity still occurs in the area. But when he saw Castro struggling to follow the truck, he had a feeling he should stop.
“I saw in the mirror he was eating and drinking as if he hadn’t eaten in days. So that’s when I knew it was serious, what I saw,” Martinez said.
Martinez drove Castro and Zoe to a nearby hotel. Later, Martinez and his wife went back to get Castro’s car and help fix it. Castro is incredibly grateful that he and his elderly dog might have died that day had Martinez not stopped.
“I thought about what would have happened if I hadn’t been there yesterday,” Martinez said. “I didn’t think he would be here today, as bad as he was.”
Castro never went to his mother’s house on his birthday, but he is grateful that both he and his dog survived the terrifying situation.
Featured pictures: screenshot, wthr.com
