Photo: Colleton Fire and Rescue
A 54-year-old woman from Charlotte, North Carolina, found a unique way to call for help after both of her hands were crushed while she was changing a tire on the side of the interstate in South Carolina on Sunday evening.
Police got the call around 6:57 p.m. local time, dispatching officers to the rural stretch of I-95 where she was waiting.
The woman had pulled her car over into the breakdown lane after she noticed the flat. Though she was able to remove it, her jack slipped while she was replacing it with the spare — causing the car to fall and crush both of her hands between the tire and the fender in the process.
It took her a total of 35 minutes, and multiple attempts, before she was finally able to dial 911.
Police say she was “experiencing excruciating pain” the entire time, as she was trapped alone on the side of the dark road.
Luckily, officers arrived just eight minutes after receiving her call.
Freeing her wasn’t easy, and took multiple attempts. “[The first officers] used a prybar without success and then deflated the tire to remove the air, however the car just dropped as the tire deflated,” the Colleton County Fire-Rescue team wrote. “Using the prybar, they were able to free one hand. [Firefighters] arrived a short time later and the crew deployed a Holmatro Hydraulic Spreader to lift the car. This freed her other hand.”
The woman suffered severe injuries to both her hands and all of her fingers, authorities said. Those on the scene gave her pain medication before she was transported to the trauma center at a local hospital.
All in all, the woman said she was trapped for 45 minutes. Her current condition is unknown.
source: people.com
