Accident

"I was in a head-on collision." That's how Erik started our conversation Friday night at 7:02. I think my stomach audibly sank to my toes. A million thoughts and questions raced through my head at once, but I manged to eek out, "Are you ok?" His response: "I didn't get hit." I wish he'd started with that, but I was thankful to hear it at all. But he stuck around to help with the aftermath.

Here's the article KSL has up, complete with pictures: http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=5001101

Erik was in the right lane; the Jeep was in the left. When the Jeep swerved to avoid the pickup, he had to slam on his brakes and narrowly missed being part of the wreckage. The debris from the Jeep actually hit the car. He helped locate a fire extinguisher since the Jeep was on fire and helped break the window to get the crying 18-month-old out of the car. When they did, they saw the 9-year-old in the cargo area. I don't know how he kept himself composed enough to help the two other men who were also doing what they could. He also spent some time with the driver of the pick-up, even holding the back board since there weren't enough medical personnel to go around at once. You can see him in picture 9 doing just that.

We don't know how he missed being more involved. If he'd done anything different as he left work, who knows what the outcome may have been. If the gas station hadn't been quite as crowded, this post may have had a very different outcome.

Really, divine intervention is the only explanation we have that Erik was able to make it home to us on Friday night - although I'm sure that doesn't make the families of those involved feel any better. I'm truly, truly sorry for those families; what an awful ordeal to go through. But I have to be a bit self-centered and say I'm so thankful my husband and best friend is safe and in one piece.