Most of you know that the girls and I are taking a trip to Greece. We are using the military Space A system to fly. Last night was supposed to be the start of our adventure. We made it on the flight list but as often happens with Space A, our flight was delayed for 24 hours. By the time we headed home for some sleep it was 2 AM. The roads were deserted for the most part for our long drive back home. Part of our drive included a ride through the Midtown Tunnel in Norfolk which is a 2 lane tunnel. One lane for north bound and one for south bound traffic. The north bound lane was closed for maintenance. They will often do this in the middle of the night when there is no traffic.
We got about halfway through the tunnel and I was going about 40MPH being careful because there were workers standing in the other lane. Just after I passed them, I looked in the rear view mirror and what seemed like out of nowhere there were headlights approaching extremely fast. About 3 seconds later the car plowed into us from behind. The driver never hit the brakes. I stopped as quickly as I could, checked to make sure all of my girls were OK and then called 911. After the impact I looked into my rear view mirror and could see the car that hit us spinning while parts were flying off of it.
I got out of my truck after the 911 call and thought I'd go check on the other driver but realized that I did not have much strength for walking. The paramedics and police showed up quickly and got the situation under control. We soon found out that the driver who hit us was extremely drunk. He walked away from his torn up car without a scratch. The police handcuffed him and hauled him away. He is a 22 year old sailor who has a very long difficult time ahead of him dealing with the aftermath of this.
We got about halfway through the tunnel and I was going about 40MPH being careful because there were workers standing in the other lane. Just after I passed them, I looked in the rear view mirror and what seemed like out of nowhere there were headlights approaching extremely fast. About 3 seconds later the car plowed into us from behind. The driver never hit the brakes. I stopped as quickly as I could, checked to make sure all of my girls were OK and then called 911. After the impact I looked into my rear view mirror and could see the car that hit us spinning while parts were flying off of it.
I got out of my truck after the 911 call and thought I'd go check on the other driver but realized that I did not have much strength for walking. The paramedics and police showed up quickly and got the situation under control. We soon found out that the driver who hit us was extremely drunk. He walked away from his torn up car without a scratch. The police handcuffed him and hauled him away. He is a 22 year old sailor who has a very long difficult time ahead of him dealing with the aftermath of this.
The scene
His car
You cannot tell it but his windshield is busted
My tank... I mean Suburban sustained little damage in comparison
Some amazing things:
* Caitlin was not driving. The thought crossed my mind to have her drive us home.
* We were not driving our little Mazda. I almost drove it because it gets better gas mileage but decide at the last minute to go for comfort.
* There was no oncoming traffic
* We had already passed the workers standing in the other lane so they were not harmed. The workers told the police that they figured the other driver was traveling about 90-100 MPH when he hit us. They witnessed the accident and were very helpful in describing what happened.
* Our airbags did not deploy
* No one was injured! Amazing!
The girls and I are currently back in the Space A terminal about to board our flight.
2 comments:
As the mother of a soldier who was arrested for DUI (just last year now), I am so thankful that this young man met up with YOU of all people (not to mention the myriad of little miracles in place that include no one being seriously injured). He is going to need a lot of prayer and forgiveness, especially that of forgiving himself. As he comes to realize that he hit a chaplain's family and the darkness of the days ahead of him - oh my.
The other thought that goes through my mind is: I thought you were safely on your way to Greece when I saw Valerie's post this evening and my heart just stopped. THANK the LORD that everything turned out as well as it did and that you listened to that still small voice that whispered to take the Big Truck! {{{{HUGS}}}}
How terrifying but also how wonderful that it wasn't any worse. So many "what ifs"...
We've talked about trading in our Suburban for a small, economy car but then I see something like this and am grateful to be driving something with some serious protection in case of an accident.
I hope you and the girls make it to Greece without further incident and that you aren't too sore.
Post a Comment