One day my wife and 2 kids at that time were headed home, we were on a 6 lane highway (3 lanes on each side with a median in the middle) I was in the middle lane on our side of the road coming up on a light. I had a strange feeling that I should get into the right most lance since our turn was coming up in an about 2 miles and I don’t like the stress of having to try to merge over. So I got over and we were stopped at the red light and a red truck with a camper top pulled up beside us and I noticed through the window of the camper top they had a clothing rack. Kind of like a closet where you can hang shirts so maybe it was like a dry cleaning business because it had dress shirts hung up in it. Anyways I was staring at it just off in my own world when suddenly in lunged forward into the middle of the intersection and next thing I notice a small car that looked like it was crushed like a soda can was in front of us front number to front bumper. And another car to our left was spun around facing backwards smoking with fluids pouring out of it. My first instinct was it was going to catch on fire so I hopped out and there was a man in there with what looked like a broken arm because he couldn’t take off his seat belt so I pulled him out of his car because I thought it was going to catch fire and we would watch him burn alive. After that I ran over to the other car and at that time there was a crowd gathering around and people screaming. One thing I remember was a random person I’m not sure where they were located screaming “oh my fucking god they’re fucking dead “ I ran over to the other car trying to help them out and open the door but the car was so crushed it wasn’t possible and I tried smashing out the window with my elbow but it’s not like they portray in the movies. And seeing into the car window the girl I’m not sure if I can describe what I saw on here so I won’t go into detail but she was dead. And the cops arrived and told us to move our truck since we were parked 5 feet away from the front number of the car and we left. When I hopped back into our truck I told my wife to not look over in that direction but I never went into detail. After that I went home and poured a stiff drink and called my dad and cried. The thing that gets me is we were in that lane right before it happened, as we were pulling off and driving away they were getting the jaws of life to remove that windshield and that could have been my family in there. Also afterwards on the news it was reported a drunk driver rear ended a girl and her sister who were in that car and the younger sister died on the way to the hospital, which I know isn’t true because given what I saw I’m pretty sure I saw her last breath. They were at a dead stop behind a red truck and got sandwiched by a guy driving 50 mph. I’m sorry I suck at telling stories and it wasn’t much of a confession but I haven’t told many people about that and it’s a hell of a thing for me to think about.
Comments
Rest in peace to the girls.
Tldr
Paragraphs please.
That’s a rough thing to have to see for sure!
I’m really glad you were not in that lane…
I wish you peace.. and it does help to get some things off your chest. 🤗
I have something that haunts me too… let’s just say… I can’t think about 9/11… it really bothers me. My demon in ways that haunts me.
Im sorry you had to witness that. But im glad you and your family are safe. Be careful but try to forget. Life goes on.
Yeah, man, that’s rough. I’m glad your family is OK, and I’m sorry about those two girls. I’ve found that to reduce the amount of dwell time that these memories have in your consciousness, you need to talk about them every once in a while, like you did in this post. Ideally, you tell a professional, or it could be a friend/relative… but even just sitting in a room alone and telling the walls, letting everything out, including tears if you need to, and you probably do, will do wonders for your mental health.
There are a few things I’ve seen in my life that still bother me decades later. Every once in a while, the memories start to seep in when I don’t want them to, and that’s when I know I have to express it, to talk about it, cry about it, celebrate what could have been, and be thankful for what is. Wish you well.
That’s a lot. I hope you’re okay. I hope you find a place to talk about this or write about it. We need to talk out our traumatic experiences. Thanks for sharing with us. Take care.
I’m glad you are okay man. Life sucks like that sometimes.
You’re so brave and did much more than what was expected by already going out and exposing yourself to danger in order to help strangers. That’s what a real man does. We all can learn a thing or two from you.
Thank you for being a good human.
Fuck drunk drivers
Wasn’t your time.
Life is crazy. Sounds like you have survivor’s guilt. It may be worth looking into a therapist, if only to help you work through the feelings.
There is a thing called “secondary trauma” and you just described it. I suspect you have had flashbacks of what you saw and hopefully they will fade over time.
You couldn’t do more ! Bless your heart ! You didn’t cause it nor could you control it. God had other plans for you ! Bless their families.
I’m so sorry you witnessed that.. I remember being at the park with my daughter about 3 years ago and I looked up when I heard this strange, loud squealing sound. I heard a huge WHOM-WHOMPP and saw a car launch straight up in the air-totally vertical. I was seeing this up over the fence line on a curve in the road, so it wasn’t completely visible, but I could tell it landed hard onto a big, broad tree. I immediately was dialing 911. I hurriedly walked my 3yo to our car, whilst talking to the dispatcher. My daughter asked why we had to go and I told her we needed to see if the person was okay. I got us into the car and quickly drove over to where the crash happened (it was about 300ft down and across the street and I wanted to get there quickly). There were several homeowners who’d rushed out to the scene. I have very limited (but better than nothing) first aid training and I rolled my window down and asked one of the people surrounding the car if they could see the driver. I wanted to know how I could help them. But the guy just shook his head and said nah, he’s gone. My stomach sank. I asked him if he was sure and if he could see him and he just said yeah he’s gone. It was instantly harder for me to breathe. With my daughter in the backseat, I knew I had to keep it chill, so I drove away and swallowed tears down. She asked me why we were leaving and why we weren’t helping them, and I told her that fire and police would be there soon and we needed to get out of their way so they could do their job and help them. I texted my parents and my church after that, asking for prayer for the driver’s family, and for me for witnessing that fatal accident. What sucked even more is that via the news a day later, I found out there was a passenger who was also deceased. Both died on impact. I cried for a while afterwards, and I’ll never forget those sounds, but I carry it with me like a memorial. You’re doing a good job by telling others about it. And it’s okay to feel the way you do about it.
Paramedic here.
I’m sorry you saw that. 😪
I only survive in my job because I never look directly at that stuff. It helps that I arrive after it’s already happened. Because, and hear this, the sounds you heard and the smell of hot radiator fluid, oil, airbag smoke and burning plastic will stay with you. You may have a hard time for a few days, try to be nice to yourself.
The incident was really out of your control and I’m glad you and your family are safe. I hope after you shared this story you felt better and lighter
Was driving once with my girlfriend on a rainy highway in Tennessee, and we came across a car crash that had just happened moments before… noticed a hole in the windshield with a decent amount of blood — that’s when my gf started screaming. The top of some girl’s scalp was casually laying on the street, blonde hair neatly arranged. I managed to convince my gf that it was a wig, and not her scalp. We didn’t stop — other cars had already stopped to help (and there was no way I was going to let my gf see that situation.)
That’s reaally heavy… I’m glad you were there to help
Someone else on here said to be nice to yourself, and yes do that. It’s very much okay to seek therapy to talk through the trauma and hopefully get past it. I have no doubt that you did and would have done all you could to save them, but it was out of your hands.
My dad was stopped at an intersection behind another car, and when the light changed that driver pulled into the intersection. He was immediately struck by a tractor trailer truck, whose driver had fallen asleep at the wheel and blew through the red light. The poor driver who was hit was beheaded. My dad had to go to therapy to deal with it. He then he had relive it all months later as a witness at the truck driver’s trial. The whole thing haunts him to this day, since it could’ve easily been him that got hit.
So sorry you had to see that, you’re a great man & you were blessed to have that sixth sense in order to protect your family. They’re lucky to have you. Rest in peace to the girls who lost their lives. That is truly tragic, but please take this burden off. You did what you could to help & that is so important. You can put it down now. 🙏🏾
That’s a heavy thing to carry, Im sorry for that. What you went through was traumatic, and it makes sense it still sticks with you.. But remember the way you acted in the moment pulling someone out, trying to help, protecting your family, shows you did everything you could. It’s also normal to still feel shaken and emotional about it. I hope your doing great now…
Well, I’d like to give you a different perspective. Remember that little voice in your head that told you to get out of that lane now don’t wait? That was your own spirit keeping you safe, you and your family. Yes it was terrible what happened and you did what you could to help at the time. You are an empathetic human being that responded to someone else’s time of need.
Now, give yourself space and time to process the overall experience and recognize the good things that happened for you. You listened to your inner voice that kept you and your family safe because you listened to it and acted accordingly. You got out of that lane.
You helped as much as you could at the time, your response helped another human in their time of need you got him out of that car! You left when you knew you could be of no more assistance and continued to keep your family safe. That’s an awful LOT of positive actions performed by you! You are a good human being and a great protector and provider for your family. The only thing you should do for yourself is find a therapist to help you stop reliving the sights and sounds and smells of that horrible tragedy. It is possible to overcome and you can do it. Give yourself this gift, you deserve it.
This is trauma inducing for sure. Be careful because it can cause you problems. Please seek therapy if you can. You are a good person for trying to help, try to remember you did all you could do and you did more than some people would. Try to have peace from that.
Man thats tough but your familys ok.
Keep one of these in your car people
U told it pretty well, wow👏🏾😢
You are a good person. You tried to help. A lot of people wouldn’t.
I was the first at the scene of a multi-vehicle accident where 5 people were killed, three adults, two children. Both parents (dad was the driver) 5 year 5-year-old Mikey and his infant sister were in one car, trying to pass on a blind curve, and hit an innocent man head-on killing him. It was horrible. It deeply bothered me for many months.
I am nowadays a retired RN and this took place some thirty years ago. I had been driving home after my 12-hour night shift and saw a hubcap rolling down the road just before a long, winding, blind curve. I slowed down and when I got near the center of the curve, I saw a little boy on the road and a car with a smashed-in in front end. Then it seemed all hell broke loose, but without sound.
I’ve worked in the ER on occasion and have seen things not to be repeated. But seeing that accident, really, really made me question my profession. I never wanted to have to cover in the ER again and care for children who had severe trauma.
Time is a great healer. It helps diminish the sights and sounds of such a tragic event like this.
I still have to drive by where that accident happened every single time I go into town. At least nowadays I no longer cry thinking about Mikey and how he died in my arms and the loss of life to so many because his father was late in driving him to school.
Thank you so much for sharing your story. I know it was a really traumatic event that you went through.But you handled it as best as you could.
Your children saw that when bad things happened, you didn’t hesitate to help. That makes a huge impact on young ones. Not all heroes wear capes. Actions are more important than words. Your actions proved that you have a good heart.
13 years ago, I was involved in a massive vehicular accident. At the time, I was driving a semi truck. No one was at fault, a sinkhole opened under traffic: An act of nature.
Multiple vehicles were damaged, and some seemed to disappear. My tractor flipped and rolled, landing on the driver’s side. I was hurt bad, knocked unconscious for a bit. There are many things about that day that I wish I could forget.
But I will never forget the two women who pulled me out of the broken windshield. 💔 There was a van on fire crushed against my trailer. If itt wasn’t for those women.I wouldn’t be alive today. Because of their courage, I am able to see my daughter grow up. ❤️
So, from the bottom of my heart, THANK YOU for stepping up and taking action.
I never got to thank those women.
But I will never forget them.
Trauma is very real man. That’s an awful thing to have burned into your memory. It’s good to get it out but maybe you should share it with your wife and let her help comfort you.
Sounds like you were kissed by an angel.. it’s like when you leave the house and think you left the stove on so you turn around to check and avoid a car accident.. in your case, the thought of merging over early to calm your anxiety saved you and your family.
I had a similar situation back in my twenties, im now in my sixties. It was before seatbelt laws and cell phones.
A coworker and myself were working at our bosses shop on a rural narrow county road and I heard brakes and tires squeal. I turned around just in time of the collision and just like slow motion I see a infant 2 maybe 3 yrs old that was standing in the middle of the front bench seat of the station wagon the family was driving launch forward and fly into the front windshield.
I yelled at my coworker Bobby to come on and we ran out to the road to offer assistance. The father got out and the child while still alive began screaming in pain and that poor child’s head was split from front to back from the impact.
I remembered the dad all he was doing was screaming at the person In the other car how he was going to sue her for every penny she had and I was thinking to myself wow his child is hurt and all he’s thinking about is monetary gains.
The father finally picked up the child and I ran to the other car, a girl about my same age, in shock just sitting in her car, death grip on the steering wheel trembling, unable to talk. I know she saw that child crash into the windshield as I tried to talk to her and see if she was OK but she couldn’t respond like I said from shock.
I ran back to the father and his wife, they were young too and the screaming child and convinced them the best thing was to keep the injured child still due to the head injury. He just kept repeating how he was going to sue and I finally said look there will be time for that later we need to take care of your child right now.
The grandmother of the hurt infant who lived on that road showed up before the emergency crews did and she grabbed the crying child up and began bouncing the baby in her arms attempting to comfort him.
I told the grandmother that probably wasn’t a good idea and to try and keep the boy still.
She just gave me a go to hell look and began bouncing the infant even more, so I just left them alone.
Finally the ambulance arrived and sheriff’s and I never heard for sure about the outcome, someone told me they thought the infant ended up dying.
I don’t dwell on it but your story reminded me of my experience and to this day when I do think of it I can still see that boy flying into the windshield.
Rest in life.
Schizo wall of text?
I’m sorry that happened to you. You and your family were spared that day. Very sad for the other people. You did what you could do to help others. I’m sorry you saw what you saw. I have heard of survivor’s guilt, but I don’t know enough to talk about what it is. May you find peace.
You have PTSD usually when you need to retell a trauma story. I found my mother dead and she was only 52 and had not been sick. She was in an awful position and way and had been gone for a day. It was not a pretty sight. To make things worse 911 dispatchers were yelling at me to pull her down and do CPR and even tho I tried very hard to tell them that she was gone they kept yelling at me. I found out well over a year later that my retelling of the story was part of PTSD. Be very kind to yourself and seek therapy. It can cause a lot of collateral damage. I don’t pray as much as I’d like or used to partly due to my incident but I will be praying for you today. Your nervous system has an imprint of that incident. I’m so sorry for you.
I’m so sorry that lives in your head.
We all need to pay more attention when we drive, it’s been crazy on the roads last couple years
That’s so sad man, why the fuck do people drive like they do, they could have had such a good life.
Sorry unless deal with that thing on regular It will effect you. Because you are A normal descent human , I had similar things. driving home from work A young guy jumped off over pass I almost ran him over! I pulled over tried to help But he was A ess and died.. I saw his face in my dreams for long time! I wake up in middle of night seeing his face I d be all sweaty.. those things have effect on you. I can t imagine firefighters .hospital employees cops and others that see these things all time
That survivors guilt isn’t yours to carry. That was her fate that day, not yours. You are meant to be here to take care of your own unfinished business. When it’s your time, you can’t escape it, just like she couldn’t. God Bless you and I hope you enjoy your life!
an incredibly heavy experience to carry, and it makes sense that it still weighs on you. You were thrown into a horrific situation, and despite the shock and fear, you acted you pulled someone out, you tried to help, and you protected your family from seeing the worst of it.
Whoa! Rip for the girls 🙏🏻 also dude thanks for helping
What a horrible thing to witness. Thank your guardian angels. Sending hugs and blessings
U prob have ptsd from this. There are things that can help stop looping visual memories about it, like EMDR therapy
Things work in mysterious ways & something still needed you & your family here on earth. Trauma you witnessed, if it still bothers you a support group could help.
Maybe look into talking to a therapist just to process your feelings. Seeing something like that can be traumatic.
You are incredibly well detailed at giving details. Improve by placing them in paragraphs, space out more. Story telling is great.
The same thing happened to me. I was approaching a red light at the bottom of a hill. For some reason, my brain just said get in the right lane, which meant stopping behind a truck instead of being first in the left lane at the light. I typically drive fast and it was so weird for me not to stay in the left lane. Well I’m sitting there behind this truck, and I hear honking. A dump truck is flying down the hill and rolls right by me in the left lane and smashes into the car that would have been me. The car was smasked into a building and the person died.. such a strange feeling after. I was crying for the next week.
I am so sorry that happened to you. As a therapist, I can tell you that witnessing a traumatic event, particularly where someone died, can cause PTSD. It might be worth talking to a therapist to unpack what you saw. Survivors guilt is a real thing; wishing you the best.
“Also afterwards on the news it was reported a drunk driver rear ended a girl and her sister who were in that car and the younger sister died on the way to the hospital, which know isn’t true because given what saw lI’m pretty sure saw her last breath.”
It’s important to remember there are, legally, varying levels of ‘dead.’
When my son drowned he was physically dead. I started CPR. A nurse that was with us relieved me. An ambulance showed up and they were able to establish a heartbeat. He was life flighted to a major hospital. He ‘lived’ for several days until being declared legally brain dead. About 24 hours after that he was an organ donor and hero to several families.
But he died well before I even started CPR.
I’m very sorry you’ve carried that with you. Take solace that you helped when many didn’t or couldn’t.
Everytime i hear brakes squealing i am right back at an accident scene i had. Even id it it juat on tv
Damn, that’s heavy! I am sorry that you had to experience such a traumatic event.
OP, if you have the option, please consider EMDR therapy. It truly helps when you have to live the memories of traumatic events.
I can’t imagine witnessing that. I’m sorry. Great you listened to that nudge that told you to get over.
I’m sorry you had to experience that, and the repercussions of seeing that can be more of a struggle in life.
Always, always listen to that little voice/ your gut instinct. Mine has saved me many times.
Happy you listened!