Truck driver Davin Taylor is a seasoned professional with over 13 years’ experience. In all those years he had never experienced a major crash, until now.
On June 16 around 4:30, Taylor was driving north on I-95 and had just passed the Palm Coast Parkway intersection in Flager County, Florida. The truck he was driving belongs to the Brown Trucking Company of Georgia.
Flaglerlive reported that a young woman in her twenties, driving a Hyundai Elantra, was on the furthest inside lane of I-95’s northbound lanes, while the truck driver was driving in the center lane.
According to a Florida Highway Patrol investigator, the woman lost control of her car for unknown reasons.
It veered into a guardrail, then bounced her car back into traffic. It then struck the semi truck and traveled underneath the big rig. The car crashed into the middle of the trailer and smashed against its rear wheels.
The top of the Elantra was cut off.
As Taylor was traveling at a speed between 60 and 70 mph, the truck’s momentum didn’t allow for an immediate stop. Because of this, the truck continued for another ¼ mile before it came to a stop in the right shoulder.
Taylor explained:
“I felt it. I didn’t see it. She hit the guard rail, when she hit it I knew I needed to get over, once I got over, that’s when I actually felt the impact.”
This car crash victim is lucky to be alive. Taylor explained that she could have been decapitated:
“I’ve seen accidents to where maybe she didn’t duck, maybe her head–you just don’t know. It’s my first major accident.”
Amazingly, the woman survived with insignificant injuries. She was taken to Halifax hospital in Daytona Beach for precautionary reasons, but was talking, breathing and conscious.
Flagler County Fire Rescue and Palm Coast Fire Department firefighter-paramedics had to cut into her vehicle in order to extract her from her car.
Taylor commented:
“I think she had a scrape on her elbow, as far as that that’s all I saw. She was coherent, she was OK.”
He furthered:
“Everything is OK. As long as she’s OK, I’m fine,” Taylor said.
The incident caused northbound traffic to be restricted to one lane after 4:30 p.m. At 6:15 p.m., salvage crews arrived and traffic was backed up for 3 miles.