Bicycle crash survivor credits helmet for saving life
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SEATTLE -- To look at him now, you might think someone did something vicious to 11-year-old Andrew Madrid. Cuts line is face and his left eye is a pulsing hue of purple. It's also swollen shut.
For Andrew, it could have been worse. But he wore his bicycle helmet instead.
"They didn't yield for him. They said that they didn't see him," Andrew's mother Gina Madrid said. She has been watching him since Andrew was hit by a driver on Auburn Way Monday afternoon.
He was crossing the street with his bike. He was wearing his helmet and doing everything right. The helmet saved his life, but did not protect everything.
"A broken eye socket. A broken nose. A fractured pelvis bone and a fractured tailbone," Gina Madrid said.
Friday afternoon, family members showed Andrew the helmet. It was still intact, but had hard scuff marks and some dents. He fumbled with it for a few minutes and looked it over, impressed by the protection plastic and foam can provide.
He wants to share the lesson he already knows. So slightly mumbled through broken teeth and painful cuts, he mustered the words to other kids: "If you don't own a helmet, it can be a serious or fatal injury."
The driver was cited by police for failing to yield.
For Andrew, it could have been worse. But he wore his bicycle helmet instead.
"They didn't yield for him. They said that they didn't see him," Andrew's mother Gina Madrid said. She has been watching him since Andrew was hit by a driver on Auburn Way Monday afternoon.
He was crossing the street with his bike. He was wearing his helmet and doing everything right. The helmet saved his life, but did not protect everything.
"A broken eye socket. A broken nose. A fractured pelvis bone and a fractured tailbone," Gina Madrid said.
Friday afternoon, family members showed Andrew the helmet. It was still intact, but had hard scuff marks and some dents. He fumbled with it for a few minutes and looked it over, impressed by the protection plastic and foam can provide.
He wants to share the lesson he already knows. So slightly mumbled through broken teeth and painful cuts, he mustered the words to other kids: "If you don't own a helmet, it can be a serious or fatal injury."
The driver was cited by police for failing to yield.
Why do they assume that the helmet saved his life?
@Joseph Singer- probably because without it, he would have had a skull fracture. I know someone who fell from a skateboard - no helmet - and nearly died from the resulting skull fracture and massive brain trauma.  Doesn't take much for traumatic brain injury to occur when the brain gets slammed into the skull bone and rebounds to other side.  Â
I was riding my bike across a break in the Soos Creek trail yesterday.  The sides indicate drivers are to stop when a pedestrian is in the walkway.  One driver slowed down and stopped, but the driver behind her blasted the horn, and then illegally pulled into the opposite lane and tore off into on coming traffic to get around the stopped SUV.
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On another crossing where there is a red traffic light for the crosswalk, I have seen drivers speed through the light even after the walk light has come on. These crossings are often used by parents with several child bike riders in the pack.
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No law or enforcement will stop this behavior. It comes down to...can you be that stupid?  Can you be that stupid?
When I was a kid only "serious" cyclists wore helmets. I took some serious spills as a child and even lost a couple teeth. I was fortunate to have never been hurt badly. EVERYONE on a bicycle, skateboard, scooter and unicycle should wear a helmet. Thank goodness young Andrew wasnt hurt more and God's speed for his healing.
I got a pretty good demonstration of this years ago while walking home from school. As I was walking on a sidewalk that goes down a little ravine off the side of the road, I saw a biker ride past. I thought nothing of it until I came upon him a few minutes later walking his bike down the sidewalk with his helmet split in two, but largely unscathed. I have to imagine that would have been a lot worse without the helmet...
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Poor little guy. Sounds like some painful injuries. Hope you heal soon! God Bless You!Â
Yes, helmets do save lives. I hope that Andrew can do some public safety messages to nearby schools. It would be a powerful example. I hope he's given a new helmet!
This article doesn't say that he was in a marked crosswalk, though another article on Komo's community news from Auburn does. I grew up with learning the rule that bikes must always be WALKED across a street.   True, very few even do that anymore. Likewise, drivers should wait for pedestrians to cross before turning - I see people turning and really cutting it close to hitting them..
Glad the driver was not only cited but didn't turn it into a hit-n-run... driver should also be thanking lucky stars that this wasn't a fatality.
Bless your little heart. I hope that you are not hurting too bad. What a tough guy. Kudo's to parents that train their kids to wear helmets!!!
Kudos Auburn Valley YMCA for handing out these exact helmets. Â My kids have two of them. Â (Don't know if Andrew received this helmet from the YMCA but kudos all the same!)
Love and healing to you Andrew! Â I know you must be miserable but I am so glad you're okay. Â
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