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Teen foils a hotel-room intruder by using a trick her cop stepdad taught her

Great advice and quick thinking saved her life.

via Josie Bowers / TikTok

Josie Bowers, a 19-year-old woman from Canada, shared the story of how she thwarted an intruder when she was 15. The viral TikTok video is a harrowing tale and also an important lesson for everyone to learn. Josie was staying with her family at the Ocean City Hilton in Maryland when the incident occurred.

She went to her hotel room alone to take a shower while her family was on the beach. After getting out of the shower, she was alarmed when she noticed a long wire with a hook at the end wiggling its way out of the crack at the bottom of the front door. The hook was waving around, trying to catch the handle to open the door.

It's amazing that no one in the hallway noticed someone shoving a wire through the bottom of a door.

The intruders eventually caught the handle with the wire and pulled it down to enter the room. Without hesitation, Josie slammed the door shut and put on the deadbolt.

"My main thought was holy shit I'm in a towel right now and someone is about to break in and get me," she said on TikTok. "So the door opens a crack, and I just slammed it back shut and put the deadbolt on."

After the door was shut on the intruders, they pretended to work for the hotel. "So they tell me your keycard is broken and we need to get into the room and fix your keypad for you," she continued. "And so I open the door a tad bit, to see if it was a worker. It clearly wasn't, they were in jeans and a T-shirt. Hilton keeps it pretty classy, not the attire."


@josiebowers10

Reply to @emmade1rey #part2


Josie then remembered a trick that her stepfather, who's a police officer, once told her: Never let people know you're alone.

"I yelled 'Hey dad, there's someone here to fix the door.' As soon as they thought that I wasn't alone – and potentially my dad was there – they ran, they were gone," she said. A lot of people freeze in such a stressful situation but Josie was able to remember her stepfather's advice and it made all the difference.

Given their reaction, it's pretty clear that the intruders must have followed her up from the beach or had some inside information to know that she was alone. They didn't want anything to do with her father.

The TikTokker shared the video to show others what they should do in a similar situation and to remind them to never let anyone know they are alone.

"I'm glad I had this experience so I can teach people about it. Obviously, I'm safe but it could have ended up a lot worse," she said. "Be safe, you can get door stoppers, always put on the deadbolt."


This article originally appeared four years ago.

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More than 20 high school students lift car to rescue mom and toddler after she was hit

A U.S. Airman helped to pull the mom out.

KSL News|YouTube

20 high school students lift car to rescue mom and toddler

Some people are in the right place at the right time when tragedy strikes. A mother and her 2-year-old are both lucky to be alive after being struck by a car that was blinded by the sun on December 5th, 2023. Bridgette Ponson was walking across the parking lot of Layton Christian Academy in Utah when the accident occurred.

Students rushed to the car realizing that Ponson and her two small children were stuck beneath it. While the 3-year-old managed to free themselves to crawl from under the car, the mom was trapped on top of her younger child unable to move. Help arrived nearly instantly in the form of more than 20 high school students and a United States Airman.

The school's surveillance cameras caught the entire heart-stopping rescue on video as the teens struggled to lift the car. Eventually, the high schoolers were able to lift it high enough for senior airman Dominique Childress to help pull the mom and toddler to safety.

Childress was there picking up his kids when he was asked to help by his child's teacher. He explains to KSL News, “Mom was holding him, and once we were holding the car high enough, she was able (to) get up and kind of hold the car on her back as we were lifting.”

Childress went on to tell KSL that the baby's face was purple and he was unconscious but the airman was able to find a pulse. The teens worked in unison to lift the car off of the trapped mom and child, not knowing it was someone from the school's administration office. Their only focus was saving the family. Theo Roach, one of the students that helped lift the car said the reality of the situation didn't click in until afterward.

“It was a relief because I didn’t understand fully. I didn’t grasp the realness of the situation until I saw the kid breathing,” Roach told the outlet.

But it was thanks to their quick acting that Ponson and her child were spared. The youngest child was life-flighted to Primary Children's Hospital in Salt Lake City and released with minor injuries. Ponson remained hospitalized for a while longer and received multiple surgeries.

The school set up a GoFundMe for the family to help with medical bills and income since both Ponson and her husband will be out of work while everyone recovers. The world responded robustly and their fund has since surpassed its goal.

You can watch the entire interview, including the heroic rescue, below.

This article originally appeared two years ago.

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Airport staff tracks down security camera footage that captures woman's final moments with dad

"There is no logical reason I should have a video of our last goodbye."

Photo credit: Canva

Airport staff track down footage of woman's last moments with dad

After a woman lost her father suddenly, she remembered their last moments together were in an airport hugging goodbye so she reached out to see if they were willing to locate the footage. It was a day like any other day for Megan Cyr. The Canadian woman was visiting her father in due to fly back home from Winnipeg to Calgary only to miss her flight due to a mix up in time.

This seeming moment of misfortune turned out to be a gift of extra time with her dad before he died. She writes, "On December 28, 2020, I was set to leave Winnipeg and head to Calgary. However, I misread my departure time. My flight was at 7:00 AM, not 7:00 PM, as I had told my parents. I woke up that morning to realize the flight had already departed."


Cyr wasn't too concerned about the mix up in time. It was an easy fix with a quick call to the airline to get on a flight leaving the following day. Her extra day at home was a pleasant surprise for her dad as he was expecting her to already be back at her own home when he finished his shift at work. The pair spent the evening playing board games before she needed to head back to the airport in the morning.

Due to a delicious carry-on package that Cyr didn't want to see tossed in the trash if security wouldn't let it through, her dad hung back right out side the security checkpoint. He was on breakfast burrito rescue duty and took his job very seriously.


"My dad patiently waited to ensure no burrito was wasted. I gave him a thumbs-up once they went through the scanner, and that was the last time I saw him alive," Cyr shares.

That last goodbye was etched in the grieving daughter's memory. Knowing how special it was and likely never wanting to forget it, Cyr decided to take a chance and reach out to Winnipeg Richardson International Airport where she and her father had their last moments together. The woman knew the request for security footage was a long shot so after she sent the email she didn't think much about awaiting a response.


But to Cyr's delight she heard back, sharing, "every few days, I received an email from someone at the airport. I remember one stating the request had been moved to Upper Management and that there was hope. After a few exchanges, on January 20, 2021, I was gifted the video of our final moment together."

Thanks to the kindness and determination of Winnipeg airport staff, a grieving daughter has an unimaginable priceless gift–the gift of seeing her last embrace with her father. Cyr says while she'd much rather have her dad instead of a video that she will be forever grateful for the kindness of strangers.

"There is no logical reason I should have a video of our last goodbye. Typically, those moments are granted when we can anticipate someone’s death," Cyr writes, but the video of her getting an extra squeeze from her dad will be cherished forever.

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Olympic kite surfer stumbles upon a drowning woman while testing a new camera and saves her

The whole thing was captured on video.

Photo credit: Canva

A kite surfer rides the wind and waves.

Thanks to an Olympic kite surfer being in just the right place at just the right time, a woman in danger of drowning was discovered far from shore and rescued off the coast of Brazil. And thank to the kite surfer testing out a new camera on his board, the whole dramatic incident was captured on film.

Brazilian Olympian Bruno Lobo was out kite surfing off the coast of the city of São Luís, Brazil, on January 10, 2025, when he heard a cry for help. Soon he spotted a woman who was clearly struggling in the water. "I promptly approached her with the kite, tried to calm her down and asked her to climb on my back (as) she was very tired and had no strength," he wrote in an Instagram post where he shared the video. It appears she was far from shore and was unable to get back by herself.

“I was very surprised at that moment to see someone at that level in the sea, and when I recognized that she was drowning I promptly went in her direction to help,” Lobo told CNN Sport. He was able get her back to the shoreline where she was attended to by lifeguards.

Some people were confused about how the rescue was filmed. It looks like Lobo was using a 360 degree camera attached to the end of his board. The technology of these cameras allows for a view from all angles, usually with a stabilization feature that makes for a smooth result. In addition, layering images from two lenses eliminates seeing the stick that's attached to the camera, making it look like the camera was just hovering in the air.

It was Lobo's desire to test the camera that prompted him to go out that day. The woman, who has since been identified as Maria Eduarda, shared her thanks in the comments of Lobo's post:

"Words can't describe my gratitude! It was the salvation that God and my guides sent to me. I really could not handle it if I spent 5 minutes on the high sea even knowing how to swim and using anti-drowning techniques. Thank you very much and I wish you showers of blessings in your life!" Eduardo truly was fortunate, since Lobo had considered not going out that day due to the cloudiness.

The governor of the Brazilian state of Maranhão presented Lobo a medal of honor "in recognition of his act of bravery in saving the young Maria Eduarda," adding that the kite surfer "makes Maranhão proud in sport and in life."

The rescue is a good close-up illustration of how hard it is to see someone in the water, even when conditions are relatively calm. It's also a reminder that even strong swimmers can be pulled by strong currents and find themselves in a harrowing situation without warning. Some people shared that the Brazilian in particular can be dangerous.

"The rip tides along the entire coast of Brazil kill hundreds each year. Locals all know which beaches can be enjoyed under what conditions, but tourists have no idea."

"I was helicoptered out of a rip tide off the east coast of Brazil. This brings back memories."

"A tip from a native Floridian for tourists: Rip tides are narrow. If you find yourself being pulled out by a rip tide, swim parallel to the beach until you're out of the current and then swim to shore. You will never make it fighting directly against the current."

Lobo, who is an orthopedic surgeon in addition to being an Olympic kite surfer, also warned people to respect the water. "Stay alert about the danger of the sea, rivers and anywhere you don't know because the current in some places is usually very strong!" he wrote.

In reflecting on the events of that day and the interviews he fielded in the aftermath, Lobo said he was only doing his duty and that he felt he was being used as an instrument of divine intervention. "We don't explain how God does, but I know he has a purpose for each of us!" he wrote. "May we be instruments in His hand, to love others and to do good.☝🏻 🙏🏻"


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