FULTON COUNTY, OH : Driver survives crash after bailing from car before impact with semi on Monday, 7th November 2016
A terrifying accident in Fulton County forced a Sylvania man to think fast. He had only a couple of seconds to make a life-saving move.
Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers say Phil Griffey miraculously survived a crash on US 20 after bailing from his car before it ran under a semi truck.
The crash happened early Monday morning in Fulton County. Troopers say Phil Griffey was traveling westbound on US 20 when a truck traveling northbound on SR 109 pulled out into his path.
Griffey knew his car was heading underneath the trailer, but he was able to remove himself from the car before that happened.
And the aftermath is shocking. The top of Griffey's Honda Accord was basically sheared off.
Griffey's wife Rebecca told WTOL he was able to see that he was headed right for the semi's trailer and jumped out of the car just in time.
“Yes, it's fortunate that he was able to survive. A lot of times, it doesn't end up that way unfortunately,” said Sgt. Chris Fitzgerald of the Toledo post of the Ohio Highway Patrol.
Fitzgerald said these kinds of crashes usually end up being more severe and troopers have seen a lot of drivers killed.
But Griffey was able to get out before impact with the semi’s trailer, and because of that, Griffey is back at home with his family.
“The last thing that we like to do is have to go and tell someone's loved ones that they're not coming home at the end of the day due to an incident like these," Fitzgerald said.
The Highway Patrol says Griffey was lucky. Rebecca said he went to the hospital and got some staples and an injured nose. Even though he was understandably shaken up, he's OK.
It was Griffey's quick actions that prevented a tragedy.
“Driving is an action that requires you to multi-task. So you need to have all of your attention concentrated on driving,” Fitzgerald said.
The semi driver was cited for failure to yield.
Source :
Driver survives crash after bailing from car before impact with semi