Doug Girkin said "I was in my office, I heard my wife scream and there was just this young girl, hysterical."

Doug Gurkin and his family got a big surprise late Wednesday evening when Ashley Singley came knocking on their door. She was frantic and looking for help to save her friend, Josh Walters, drifting alone in the middle of Lake Travis.

Girkin said, "This is one of the first times we've had something so close that I was sure we'd have a tragic end."

"I definitely didn't want to die alone," survivor Ashley Singley said. "I never screamed like that in my whole life. I was using my whole body to scream and yelling, trying, when boats were going by I was trying to wave them down but they didn't see me. That's when I knew that by screaming I was just gonna tire my body out."

Instead, she knew the only way she could make it to shore was to calm down. And thankfully she did make it, worried about her friend Josh still floating in the water. 

Emergency crews completed an exhausting search to find him, they almost gave up hope.

Assistant Chief Mark Warren with the Pedernales Fire Department said, "About 15 minutes after we got there, about an hour into the incident, we could just see arms out in the middle of the lake. We could just barely see arms waving. He was at the end of his energy level. He was struggling."

Warren continued, "It's an amazing feat for him to stay above water for that long. He was thankful to us and I think to God, because he got a little help yesterday afternoon."

And at first Josh refused treatment through EMS, but had to eventually go in and be treated for exhaustion and dehydration. He is still in the hospital recovering.

Ashley is back in San Antonio with her family tonight. She says she's still sore from all the swimming, but overall she will be fine.

Emergency crews were able to retrieve the boat as well.