Car Destroyed. Family Safe.

Seatbelts save lives.

When I got the idea to write an article about auto insurance, I didn’t intend on sharing the story of my family’s terrifying car accident that happened in the fall of 2022.

But I thought giving a glimpse into our personal experience would give a little more impact to the information I’d plan to share about having sufficient car insurance coverage.

I abandoned the idea for the insurance post for now and I’ve decided to share my family’s story of their horrifying car crash.

The Day of the Crash

On a sunny Saturday in September of 2022, just days before my daughter’s twelfth birthday, my wife was taking our two children to a pumpkin farm not far from our home.

Everyone was excited for autumn, leaves changing color and crisp, cool evenings, firepit and s’mores.

While traveling on the highway about to make a left turn into the pumpkin farm’s parking lot, my wife’s view was obstructed and she drove into the path of another car traveling at highway speed.

The vehicles collided, sending my wife’s car airborne briefly then sliding sideways into a large road sign before coming to rest in a ditch.

My wife quickly assessed herself and felt that she was uninjured, then she heard our ten year old daughter Maggie crying in the backseat.

But my soon-to-be twelve year old daughter Lily was unresponsive in the front passenger seat.

Panicked, my wife shook Lily, calling her name and thinking the worst.

After a moment, several passing motorists stopped to assist and a man was able to take Lily from the car and place her on the grass.

What felt like an eternity passed and Lily finally opened her eyes and looked dazed and disoriented.

A kind lady helped Maggie from the backseat and my wife saw that one of Maggie’s teeth had sliced through her bottom lip and her mouth was bleeding profusely.

Still, my wife, full of adrenaline and terror, felt no pain.

Maryland State Troopers and the local fire department arrived and transported all three of my ladies to the closest hospital emergency room.

I was at work, about a forty-five minute drive from the scene of the crash, when the accident happened.

My wife called and, in a state of panic, told me that she and my girls had been in bad car accident and she didn’t know if our daughters were going to be ok.

I hurried to the emergency room and I found all three of them in a room, shaken up but not seriously injured… so we thought.

It turned out that my daughter Lily sustained a concussion and a sprained shoulder.

Maggie required stitches in her lip, which has since healed but has left a small scar.

Over the days following the accident, my wife began experiencing discomfort in her ribs and a large bruise developed across her entire chest and abdomen.

At first we thought the bruise was from her seatbelt.

But after she went to the doctor for a follow up, she got an x-ray and found that she had several broken ribs.

Confused, we wondered how that happened.

Then it occurred to me.

Take a close look at the windshield of the car.

Notice the large hole in the where the glass of almost the entire windshield is broken.

That hole was caused by a large wooden piece of a road sign that my wife’s car struck head on.

That large piece of wood ended up in the backseat of our car…

After striking my wife directly in the chest.

It’s extremely scary to think about.

That piece of wood could of done far more severe damage to her, including the worse case scenario.

Post-Accident

Since the accident, everyone has recovered physically but the memory of the terrifying crash has stuck with all three of my ladies.

Both of my daughters continue seeing a therapist, which has been profoundly beneficial to them on many levels.

If you are wondering, the driver and the passenger of the other car involved were uninjured.

Thankfully, we have good coverage with a reputable auto insurance company so everyone has been made whole financially.

So, if anything, remember this:

Seatbelts save lives!

My wife and daughters were secured in seatbelts at the time of the accident and there is no doubt that it saved their lives.

Now, go hug your loved ones, don’t take a second of life for granted and always buckle up!

Thank you for reading my story.