Crash survivor: 'I was just so extremely thankful to be alive'
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BELLINGHAM, Wash. -- A Whatcom County car crash survivor feels like a walking miracle after living through what likely should have been a fatal accident.
Erin Brun somehow avoided two blows to the head last Tuesday when a huge bundle of wood poles shot through her windshield and skewered the passenger compartment.
She was driving behind a station wagon pulling a trailer full of 27-foot long "Tipi poles" along the Mount Baker Highway. The station wagon slowed for a turning car and Brun crashed into the back of the trailer, sending dozens of the poles through her windshield and out the rear window.
"I was just so extremely thankful to be alive, thankful that I could still move my body, that I was not paralyzed," Brun said.
As the poles flew toward her face, Brun has a split second to move her head a few inches to one side.
"It must have been a reflex action," she said. "That's the only way i can comprehend it."
Washington State Patrol trooper Bob Wilson had just responded to a fatal crash earlier that morning when he pulled up to Brun's wrecked car near the town of Deming.
"I thought it was going to be a fatal," Wilson said.
By the time he arrived, somebody had already pulled Brun from the wreckage. Wilson said the sight was shocking.
"On the very end of the poles, the rear-view mirror was out here. It was just, I was shocked," he said.
But Brun didn't make it out completely unscathed. A shard of wood peeled off one of the poles and stopped just short of piercing her brain.
"Which means my head was broken and that wooden stake was in my head," Brun said.
Brun said the near-death experience gave her a new lease on life.
"I have so much to live for," she said. "It's the people, the people that matter in your life. That's what it comes down to."
Erin Brun somehow avoided two blows to the head last Tuesday when a huge bundle of wood poles shot through her windshield and skewered the passenger compartment.
She was driving behind a station wagon pulling a trailer full of 27-foot long "Tipi poles" along the Mount Baker Highway. The station wagon slowed for a turning car and Brun crashed into the back of the trailer, sending dozens of the poles through her windshield and out the rear window.
"I was just so extremely thankful to be alive, thankful that I could still move my body, that I was not paralyzed," Brun said.
As the poles flew toward her face, Brun has a split second to move her head a few inches to one side.
"It must have been a reflex action," she said. "That's the only way i can comprehend it."
Washington State Patrol trooper Bob Wilson had just responded to a fatal crash earlier that morning when he pulled up to Brun's wrecked car near the town of Deming.
"I thought it was going to be a fatal," Wilson said.
By the time he arrived, somebody had already pulled Brun from the wreckage. Wilson said the sight was shocking.
"On the very end of the poles, the rear-view mirror was out here. It was just, I was shocked," he said.
But Brun didn't make it out completely unscathed. A shard of wood peeled off one of the poles and stopped just short of piercing her brain.
"Which means my head was broken and that wooden stake was in my head," Brun said.
Brun said the near-death experience gave her a new lease on life.
"I have so much to live for," she said. "It's the people, the people that matter in your life. That's what it comes down to."
See kids? This is what happens when you text while driving.
 @Katie_Kat Idiot!
Either way, she was doing something wrong. Either she wasn't paying attention to the road, or she was following too closely. If you see a car hauling a trailer in front of you, you should know that yes, it won't look as long as it really is. Therefore, you need to adjust your following distance. Simple? Apparently not for this woman.
And just what was she doing to rear end the car in front of her in the first place?
 @Howard Beale The pole hauler had an illegally long load and dynamited his brakes, maybe?
Others have already mentioned it but what in the heck was this woman doing? She obviously wasn't paying attention to the road in front of her. This story is a terrible example of reporting. She's just lucky that no one else was in the car with her.
Perhaps she'll consider paying attention while driving in the future?
This is a lovely update, but it doesn't answer "the" question. Why did she run into the back end of a truck?
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I don't think a $125 ticket is enough of a punishment for this sort of thing. Also, were the drivers of the truck she hit injured?
 @Jill Looking closely, the trailer has a BC plate.  Maybe they don't have the "3 foot" rule there...
 @technocat It doesn't matter. We have it HERE.
 @Glassman Exactly.  Another tick on the count of Canadians either not knowing or disregarding our traffic laws. I think I'm up to about 492 so far this year.
 @Jill Check out RCW 46.44.034. The pole hauler is wrong for having an excessively long load. The article says the pole hauler "slowed" but it doesn't say how rapidly they slowed. If they dynamited the brakes, the woman may not have perceived that the logs were as close as they were. It is VERY deceptive to follow such a load because it tricks your depth perception.
In the prior story on this, they reported the pole hauler slowed because a large truck in front of them was slowing to make a turn.
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The poles were marked with a red flag, as required for the protrusions over 3 feet from the rear of the vehicle. The flag is clearly visible in the photo gallery.
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 @Glassman Yeah, I saw that. If that's the case then they should definitely get a ticket too. Scary as hell.
 @Jill Perhaps you wish she had died in the collision???  Her car is destroyed, she was injured in the crash, she came close to being killed.  What more do you want?
 @Tim Lane Don't be silly, of course I'm happy she's fine. I said what I "wished" for, I want to know why she ran into the back of the truck. And I want a bigger ticket for driving in such a manner that you're likely to kill someone.
There you go. Learn something from it; start paying more attention!
She was driving behind a station wagon pulling a trailer full of 27-foot long "Tipi poles" along the Mount Baker Highway. The station wagon slowed for a turning car and Brun crashed into the back of the trailer, sending dozens of the poles through her windshield and out the rear window.
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I'm happy she survived, however, I think she should be cited for inattentive driving. I hope this is a wake up call for her.
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 @yentaleh As long as you have your ticket book out, read the following:
RCW 46.44.034Maximum lengths â Front and rear protrusions.
 (2) No vehicle shall be operated upon the public highways with any part of the permanent structure or load extending in excess of fifteen feet beyond the center of the last axle of such vehicle.
Using the photo gallery panorrama side-view and ruler, It appears the 27 ft poles were perfectly centered over the axle. 27/2 = 13.5.  Legal.
 @Glassman If the poles are 27' long and are centered on the trailer axle, then 13.5' is the amount extended.
 @Glassman  @yentaleh If you're right, the other drivers should get a ticket too, but their actions didn't cause the accident. She would have just ran into a truck with shorter sticks, even four feet of protruding poles would have had the same outcome.
 @Glassman  @yentaleh I'll give you that, assuming the facts prove you right. But that alone would not have caused an accident had the driver been paying any attention at all.
 @Jill  @yentaleh The article does not say how sudden the "deceleration" was. Following a load like is very deceptive to your depth perception. The pole hauler was at least half at fault. IMO.
That should make a better driver out of her. If that don't work, then we can't help her.
It's a miracle she survived, truly. That picture is unbelievable. A reminder that life is fragile, to be sure.Â
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I am always very nervous when I have to drive behind any car or truck with a load on it that looks even remotely precarious. Once on a highway in Oregon a wooden chair flew out of a truckbed in front of us and we swerved just in time to avoid it crashing through our windshield. Be careful out there, everybody!
Only one word can describe that...Holy Crap!
That's actually 2 words ... but I'll agree with the idea.
Nothing short of a miracle in my opinion. Really glad she survived.