Neighbors Say Mud Victim Saved Them

LAGUNA BEACH —  Before he was killed by a wall of mud, Glenn Flook helped others in his Laguna Canyon neighborhood make it out of their homes and to safety, neighbors said Tuesday.

“He was helping everyone. He was a hero,” said Debbie Ripley, 42, who last saw the 25-year-old construction framer after he helped her escape over the roof of her home.

Police discovered Flook’s body early Tuesday, the only known fatality from the mudslides that injured nine people and damaged several homes.

Sgt. Bob Rehaeuser said Flook, his girlfriend and two other men had left Flook’s home shortly after 8 p.m. Monday and trudged through the neighborhood. Eventually, they sought refuge inside a nearby home just before a massive mudslide slammed into it. Those inside were thrown through walls and windows, he said.

Resident Donna Folta credits Flook with helping her family get out their home after mud blocked the front door.

“He got to the house and was able to get the door open,” she said. “We were basically trapped inside there and could not have made it through without him.”

From there, Flook went to Ripley’s house. With the street flooded with water and mud, Ripley and others were attempting to climb over her roof to higher ground.

“He saw me up there struggling and said, ‘You can do it, Debbie. You can do it,’ ” she said. “He was very encouraging.”

Neighbors said Flook was from Great Britain and often built artistic sculptures and other items in his yard.

“He was very athletic. He was a skier and a snowboarder,” Ripley said. “He was the last person I would have figured to be a fatality when you think of the survival of the fittest.”

Times staff writer Shelby Grad contributed to this report.

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Massive Mudslide

Mud steamrolled into Castle Rock, a small Laguna Beach community, leaving one dead and nine injured. How it happened:

1. Mud collapses from high ridge, slides toward Castle Rock

2. Slide separates studio apartment from house, forcing people out doors and windows

3. Father, two sons, other residents pulled from mud and debris

4. Dead man found buried in mud

5. Baby swept from mother’s arms ends up face-down behind storage area

6. Mother washed into street

7. Debris, runoff flood Laguna Canyon Road

Source: Laguna Beach Fire Department; Graphic reporting by APRIL JACKSON / Los Angeles Times