I am just letting off a little steam...

It was just 10 minutes after dropping my daughters off at my mother's today so I could go to the hospital for my surgery when the tones went off for a Motor Vehicle Crash with possible fatality. My husband and I were only about a half a mile away from the incident and had to go that way to get to the hospital. We were the first to arrive and found a head on collision between a passenger car and a flat bed rollback tow truck (one of the large ones that can haul two cars at a time).

My husband (the Assistant Chief) got on the radio to advise dispatch that we were on scene to let the other in coming units know what we had. I went straight to the passenger car that was almost unidentifiable. I found the female driver mangled and completely disfigured. She had been crushed beyond recognition and it was obvious that she was deceased. I advised my husband to "confirm the fatality" and went to check the condition of the driver in the tow truck. He was visibly shaken. Thankfully he didn't have any life threatening injuries and later refused transport.

After the first EMS unit got on scene, I transferred patient care to them and walked back towards the crash site. As I walked closer, I examined the sight before me and all of a sudden, I couldn't believe my eyes. When I first approached the passenger car all I saw was the female driver and did not notice the child seat laying in the middle of the road. I got the attention of my husband, quietly I informed him of my observation so that it didn't cause a stir with all the onlookers. We gathered a small crew and began looking around for a possible child victim. The Chief of our department was also in the area and had responded to the scene in our Utility, which had our thermal device in it. It was used to search the side of the roadway that was over grown with tall grass, weeds and light brush. Fortunately, there was no child in the victim's car at the time of the crash.

I just wish I had some answers...like why does everyone have to drive so fast to go no where? The driver of the tow truck and I spoke of our Lord for a few moments and I could see the faith in the man's eyes. He asked me to pray for him so that he would be able to move on from today's tragic event and cope with his feelings. I blessed him and promised that I would keep him in my prayers for the weeks and months to come.

I just read the local TV news' website and found out that the female victim was in fact a local teenager. I can only hope that this young woman had her heart right with God and that she is now resting in Heaven.

To all my Firefighting brothers and sisters out there, please drive safe! Be cautious and be smart behind the wheel, this could happen to any of us. It has really opened my eyes! May God bless you and keep you all safe.

***Here is a link to the news report: http://your4state.com/content/fulltext/?cid=69041