A family from New Jersey on a road trip in Ireland were blown away by the reaction of locals when they got a flat tire.

Erika Hernandez was driving with her husband and their daughter in County Cork in the southern part of the country when they got a flat just after visiting the famous Blarney Castle.

In a viral post on Instagram, which has received more than 520,000 views since it was first shared on November 29, Hernandez recalled the travel disaster and how she was taken aback by the reaction of locals. “It was truly the sweetest thing,” Hernandez told Newsweek.

“We are from New Jersey, and I was on my 35th birthday trip doing a road trip through Ireland with my husband and my four-year-old daughter. It was my husband’s first time driving on the other side of the road, and we hit a curb on a narrow street but didn’t think anything of it and continued on.

“We made a stop at Blarney Castle and when we came out, saw we had a flat. We had to pull the car out of the parking lot because the parking lot was closing soon so we drove the car out to the closest street and parked. The car had no spare tire so my husband called the rental company and while we waited, 14 people stopped to see if we needed help.

“It was so sweet and we were shocked because although we have met tons of lovely people in the USA, I think the culture is a little more fast paced and me included, may not always pick up on something going on like that because I’m headed to the next thing laser focused on where I’m going.”

In the caption of her post, Hernandez revealed that locals offered to give them rides to a nearby bike shop and others said they could help changing the tire.

“In Ireland, you can see it’s truly about connection and being present,” she said. “We were sitting in the car, not in distress or anything that would really catch someone’s attention but so many people still stopped to see if we were ok and if we needed help.”

Ireland is a hugely popular destination for U.S. tourists, and in 2023, American tourists made up the second-highest proportion of travelers to the country, behind people from the United Kingdom, according to the Irish Central Statistics Office.

People took to the comments of Hernandez’s video to share their reactions.

“That’s us Irish for you. We’re a good breed,” said @satanswarriorcharlie.

Meanwhile, @thisisfreewheeling shared: “And we’ll genuinely be worried about you forever.”

“We had the same experience. Got a flat tire and had many Irish locals helping us,” said @jbenit55.

Has a dream vacation turned into a nightmare? Whether it’s a missed flight or lost luggage, we want to hear about your travel disasters. Let us know via [email protected], and your story could be featured on Newsweek.