I was driving to Lubbock as usual and following a car going over the speed limit. Do to the time of day I had the sun visor down, which meant I could really only see the car immediately in front of me. I know this is a huge mistake but I that is what I was doing.
I was putting away my sunglasses and noticed from the corner of my eye that the car in front of me quickly swerved to the other lane. As I looked up I was already so close to the parked convoy that I couldn't do anything. I turned slightly to the left, dodging I suppose and drilled into the back of the truck.
Although it was horrible to hit a vehicle, I am really glad that this is the one I hit. If it had of been any other truck this story would have a way different ending. This is not what the truck looks like anymore.
The work convoy is owned by a family in Childress, TX. They buy the most expensive safety equipment and it really pays off. The back of the truck has a buffer of some sort. It helps decrease the impact of a car wrecking into the rear of the crew.
Immediately after the wreck the crew members were at my car, yelling to see if I was alive. They soon cut away the air bags and were extremely nice to me. They gave me water, the wife washed my face and bloody arms. They were trying to keep me as calm and comfortable as possible. I think they did a great job.
It took about 10 minutes for the EMS to arrive and get me out of the car. I was rather crunched in the drivers seat so it was an interesting task.
The dash had been forced toward me and down, slamming into my knees and shins. My right foot was crunched between the gas pedal and the center part of the car which was now in the drivers floor board. I had twisted left at impact so my hip and belly took most of the blow from the seat belt. Plenty of markings came from that. The air bag had burned my right bicep pretty bad and left it really sore and bruised. My right hand and elbow (that I put in front of my face) hit the windshield that now lays on the steering wheel. I hit the right side of my head on the rear view mirror and the top of my head on the visor, leaving little mirror slivers in my hair.
The guy in the picture is quite a bit smaller than me. You can see how tight of a squeeze I was in.
The EMS people put me in a neck brace, on a stretcher and gave me oxygen. I was taken to Covenant Hospital in Lubbock, about a 20 minute ride. On the way I was given an IV and had my clothes cut off. He called in the wreck saying I had low blood pressure and a low pulse (I later informed him that I usually had lower read outs so he changed that), lower limb lacerations, exposed shin bone, possible internal bleeding from seat belt.... he also included I drove an SUV into a parked turk going over 70 mph. When I arrived at the hospital no one realized I was the one in the wreck. They were waiting for something horrible.
No, I didn't take this picture myself, the EMS guy took it (people have asked)
The nursing staff quickly passed around the photo's the convoy crew had taken. Everyone told me how lucky and blessed I was to be alive and in such good condition. I had CAT scans and X-rays and was released with only patches and an orthoboot for my right leg. No Complaints from me!
The past two days have been interesting. My soreness is incredible. It hurts to sneeze and laugh, walking feels like fire, and my joints ache. Just an observation... I'm happy to be alive. It will be a while before I can workout again, walking is getting better but it is no easy task. I am hoping to be able to jog at least in 6 weeks, depending on the pain in my knee's.
I am still picking glass out of my hand, I think I'll be doing this for a while. I clean and re-wrap my wounds twice a day. I am hoping that I don't scare too badly. I think to wish for no scars is a waste of time. I'm missing quite a bit of flesh.
1 comment:
The pain reminds you that you ARE alive.
And we are thanking God you did survive.
Love and continued prayers. Chrysti Love
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