Near death experience

[geForce]

So.. I just had a crazy experience just now as I was coming back to work from lunch today.

It may seem to some that I'm just being overly dramatic because I don't have a scratch on me, but this has made me quite shaken.

I was driving along Westminster Hwy eastbound, almost coming up to Nelson Road. It's pretty windy today and a bit rainy too. I passed by a trailer truck parked on the shoulder of the road, and as I passed by the truck, I looked in my rearview mirror. I noticed something splash on the car behind me, and at first I thought he hit the parked truck and knocked something off the truck and it splashed on the top of the car. Then I noticed the car swerve and head straight towards the ditch and down into it. I thought, what the heck is going on here? I pulled over and was pulling my phone out to call 911 and realized that the wind had blown a tree down, and the splash on the car was the tree hitting the car.

The tree hit the car with so much force that it bounced off the car, so the car actually got free from under it and then pulled away.

I ran up to where the car fell into the ditch and noticed the car was totally crushed. The driver's legs were crushed, and I couldn't see the rest of the driver as the car was obstructing the view. The passenger was visible, and she was bleeding out of her mouth. It was a pretty gruesome sight.

I stayed on the line with 911 and had to explain the situation probably like 10 times. I was even put on hold for about what seemed like forever, but probably was only 1 minute. "RCMP phone services is currently busy taking other emergency calls, please wait on the line".

As I waited for emergency people to arrive, I had to get all the other cars and trucks that pulled aside to move their vehicles out of the way so the emergency vehicles had room. I waited for the RCMP to arrive, and they took my info down and my statement of events, then left because there was no point in staying and I was even probably in the way.

As I was driving back to work, I just thought how lucky I was. The tree fell down literally 2 seconds after I passed by it... 2 seconds!
I just feel so lucky that I'm okay... and I thank God for looking after me. This is definitely a life changing experience...

[geForce]

Oh, and as we speak, I am finding ways to contact the Richmond City Hall to put pressure on whomever's responsibility these trees are on, whether it be the farmers of the land they're attached to or government property. They are dead trees and are a death trap when it gets windy.

If anyone knows of any Richmond city government contacts, let me know as I definitely want to make my only viable route to work a safe one.

[se7entse7en]

Wow... freaky! I had no idea it was that windy in Richmond. Glad you're okay!

[jeSteR]

Hmmm... Looks like G might make the 5:00 CTV news... there truck is in our parking lot with the broadcast antennae up. Apparently, one of our security guys got video footage and am selling it to CTV.

There's profit in everything now a days

[geForce]

The CTV truck guy wasn't a reporter. He was just a video tech and he was uploading the video from that security guy's camcorder. He didn't care what I had to say if I didn't have a video. And plus, I was watching the news and they didn't even mention that car accident.

However, I did speak with someone from The Province and I got quoted in the article in today's newspaper.

[jeSteR]

It was actually the very first story CTV ran at 5:00... Coleen saw it.

[geForce]

Dangit, that means I missed it. I got home just after 5pm.

[jeSteR]

The online version of the Province even has a "Related Topics" header that is Specifically Gord's name.

[Duncan]

Nice! good job Li! did they actually interview you on camera or just on record on pen and pad?

[joel]

It's good to hear that the couple in the car did not suffer any life threatening injuries. Hopefully, both will recover fully. That car looked pretty mangled from the picture. I imagine a smaller car may have faired even worse.

[geForce]

Yeah, I heard their injuries were not life threatening.. I guess it looked a lot worse than it was?

The Province reporter just interviewed me over the phone.

[jeSteR]

[geForce]

I couldn't find the comment board.. where did you see it?

[Duncan]

ditto.. i was confused too.. i didn't see any comments...

[jeSteR]

It's at this link