Good Samaritans pull mom, two kids from flaming wreckage
GORST, Wash. -- Two children and their mother were pulled from a flaming vehicle by Good Samaritans during a crash Monday morning that officials said was a "miracle that no one was killed."
The crash happened on an icy stretch of SR-3 near Division Street in Gorst around 8:43 a.m., said Trooper Todd Bartolac with the Washington State Patrol.
A BMW with a 27-year-old mother and two kids inside were heading south on SR-3 and was in the middle of changing lanes when their car hit an ice patch, skidded into the northbound lanes and struck a FedEx truck head on, Bartolac said.
The FedEx truck was knocked into the guardrail while the BMW careened back into the southbound lanes and struck a Dodge Avenger.
8-year-old Divina Garner was in the backseat with her 1-month-old sister Winter when their car began to skid.
"In my mind, I was like, saying, 'Mommy, can you please stop driving right now? It's freaking me out,' " she said.
Moments after impact, a fire broke out in the front of the car. The mother had suffered an injury to her pelvis and was unable to move but four Good Samaritans who had witnessed the crash rushed to the car, Bartolac said.
A man and woman were able to get Winter out from the backseat while another man freed Divina from the other backseat. A fourth person helped get the mother out.
"There's nice people in the world still," said Arian Salas, the driver's cousin. "So I'm just very grateful."
The children were not hurt but the mother was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital for treatment of her injured pelvis. The driver of the FedEx truck was taken to Harrison Hospital in Bremerton for treatment of a minor leg injury,. The driver of the Avenger wasn't hurt.
Bartolac said it was amazing there were no life-threatening injuries and credited the quick action of the Good Samaritans as those seconds were crucial in making sure everyone inside the BMW got out safely.
"That 10, 30 seconds, whatever, minute that those individuals got those kids out, and the mother out of the vehicle, that could've meant their lives," Bartolac said.
Divina also expressed her thanks to those who stopped to help.
"I want to say thank you for helping me, my baby sister and my mommy," she said. "We're very thankful."
Investigators did find that the tires on the mother's car had low traction and she will likely be cited for the crash.
The crash happened on an icy stretch of SR-3 near Division Street in Gorst around 8:43 a.m., said Trooper Todd Bartolac with the Washington State Patrol.
A BMW with a 27-year-old mother and two kids inside were heading south on SR-3 and was in the middle of changing lanes when their car hit an ice patch, skidded into the northbound lanes and struck a FedEx truck head on, Bartolac said.
The FedEx truck was knocked into the guardrail while the BMW careened back into the southbound lanes and struck a Dodge Avenger.
8-year-old Divina Garner was in the backseat with her 1-month-old sister Winter when their car began to skid.
"In my mind, I was like, saying, 'Mommy, can you please stop driving right now? It's freaking me out,' " she said.
Moments after impact, a fire broke out in the front of the car. The mother had suffered an injury to her pelvis and was unable to move but four Good Samaritans who had witnessed the crash rushed to the car, Bartolac said.
A man and woman were able to get Winter out from the backseat while another man freed Divina from the other backseat. A fourth person helped get the mother out.
"There's nice people in the world still," said Arian Salas, the driver's cousin. "So I'm just very grateful."
The children were not hurt but the mother was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital for treatment of her injured pelvis. The driver of the FedEx truck was taken to Harrison Hospital in Bremerton for treatment of a minor leg injury,. The driver of the Avenger wasn't hurt.
Bartolac said it was amazing there were no life-threatening injuries and credited the quick action of the Good Samaritans as those seconds were crucial in making sure everyone inside the BMW got out safely.
"That 10, 30 seconds, whatever, minute that those individuals got those kids out, and the mother out of the vehicle, that could've meant their lives," Bartolac said.
Divina also expressed her thanks to those who stopped to help.
"I want to say thank you for helping me, my baby sister and my mommy," she said. "We're very thankful."
Investigators did find that the tires on the mother's car had low traction and she will likely be cited for the crash.
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