i saw something bad happen…
you know when you’re driving home in your own community after having a fun morning, and you want to get home quick for lunch and nap…

but then…

…you witness a car crash. You don’t expect to see it, you don’t even expect to ever be a part of one. But these things happen. That’s why if you are ever involved in a car crash you need to get yourself a lawyer, such as one from somewhere like this charleston law firm, that way you might be able to get the compensation that you deserve. I have no idea if it was distracted driving or just simple misfortune, but it was still horrifying to see. If you are worried about finding yourself in a similar situation or you just want a little more confidence with your driving, you may want to check out this online defensive driving NY school for more information on courses that could give you the confidence you need while out on the road.

i saw one car drive through the intersection and hit another car. i saw the face of the guy in the passenger side when the airbag deployed. i saw the kid in the backseat get lifted into the air upon impact. i heard the LOUD crash. i screamed. i felt my heart stop and then i felt my adrenalin set it.
dear hubby ran out of our car to see if he could help and i got my phone out to call 911.

* i have a recurring nightmare where i am in trouble and need to phone for help, but i can’t figure out how to use the phone. sometimes i’m at an old phone booth and sometimes i am using my own cell (a smart phone). but, i just can’t seem to coordinate my fingers and so i feel panicked.

anyhow, with my phone in hand, i dialed 9-1-1. and then nothing happened. just like in my nightmare. AAHHHHHH!
luckily i noticed my mistake and quickly hit the green “send” button. a voice on the other end asked me if i wanted police, ambulance or fire and i had no idea what to say so i said, all of the above! i didn’t actually know if anyone was hurt, bleeding or whatever but the impact was pretty hard and my motto is always better safe than sorry. i told the operator where we were, what intersection and that there had been a car crash. that was that.
then i waited in the car with the kids as dear hubby checked to see if anyone needed anything. it felt like years went by before we heard or saw the flashing lights of the approaching emergency vehicles in the distance. i was relieved when they arrived. the crash happened right in the middle of the fairly large intersection, and traffic was becoming agitated with all the waiting and slow flow of cars trying to avoid the crash scene.
because i saw what happened, and because i phoned 911, we thought we should stick around. and, i was asked to write a statement for the police. i was in such a heightened state that i actually forgot what happened; or i got confused about what was north and east and what was what. with the kids there i was distracted and my heart was still racing pretty fast.
i think i put down the wrong info on my statement.
feck.

but, i wasn’t the only witness. there were lots of people there when…
… at around noon today, a guy, a young man in his early 20’s ran a red light at a fairly high speed and crashed into a turning car who had the right of way. the guy’s son was in the backseat, in a carseat and dear hubby said they all seemed fine, well physically and for now, i suppose. later on other people saw him take a breathalyzer and saw him get arrested. the car that he hit had a young woman in it, who was driving after leaving her co-op at a nursing home (according to other bystanders). she was taken away in an ambulance, but we saw her and she was sitting up, conscious and was chatting with the paramedics. that’s a good sign, right?

it was one of those things, seeing that crash, that made me feel so fortunate that we were 10 seconds behind in the events that unfolded. of course i am sad that anyone had to be involved or be hurt, but i am relieved it was not my family. the woman’s car was hit in the rear door, which in our car means one of the kids would have been affected. lion specifically and the thought of that makes me sick to my stomach. the thought of my kids being hurt by someone else’s carelessness and selfishness makes me terrified. and angry.

that was no accident i witnessed. an accident is something that could not have been prevented, and, simply put, that car crash could have been avoided, only if that guy driving had made better choices in those moments leading up to it. it was his choice to run a red, to drive fast and possibly do it all while under the influence of drugs and or alcohol. those were no accident; they were all choices and decisions he made, regardless of how well thought out.
they were no accident.

i was very shaken when we eventually got home. my heart raced for a while and i felt tense and anxious. the crash has been playing on repeat in my mind for a while and i feel great sadness for all the people involved. i hope the young woman who was taken to the hospital is not physically hurt from the impact she endured. I also hope that she got herself a lawyer like Batta Fulkerson as soon as she can. She doesn’t deserve what happened to her and she deserves retribution. i hope they looked her over and that she was picked up by loved ones and taken home for some TLC. i hope she is able to overcome the emotional trauma from this incident with the support of family and friends.
i hope the little boy who sat in the backseat, who is about the same age as our bear, who watched his dad get arrested is somewhere safe now. i hope he is not traumatized by these events and i hope he is in the loving arms of his family. i hope his dad wasn’t high or drunk, and i hope he learns a big lesson in all of this.
it’s one thing to gamble with your own life, but to gamble with other people’s lives, simply to get to your destination faster is selfish and immature.

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life is incredibly fragile and we are all so vulnerable in it. that is why we must remember that we are not alone in this, that what you do or don’t do has a ripple effect on the community around you.
love yourself enough,
love others enough,
err on the side of caution and slow down,
smell the roses, listen to the birds, savour the taste.

stay safe people.