In Focus

Wednesday turned out to be an...eventful day...to say the least.

That morning I was diagnosed with Lyme Disease—more on that later—but I was still reeling from that when I was headed to a physical therapy appointment that afternoon.

I pulled up to the notorious intersection in Hewitt—the one I won’t name because it’s cursed—and I noticed smoke coming from a car across the intersection, as well as a smashed up motorcycle. An accident happened just seconds before I got there. I pulled over and ran to the motorcycle and I asked if anyone was on the phone with 911 and they were.

Two people were laying on the ground on their right sides, one male and one female. A woman was helping the female victim and a man was helping the male victim. The man asked me if I was afraid of blood. I am not. So I jumped in to assist the man who turned out to be a first responder from Dalton who was just passing through. I told him to tell me what he wanted me to do.

The first responder was checking out the victim’s visible injuries, telling the victim not to move, while I untangled his foot that was wrapped around another shoe under the motorcycle. There was definitely something wrong with the victim’s left leg. We switched positions so I could clean the visible wounds with gauze from the med bag, like the road rash on his hand which were possibly very bruised or fractured.

While trying to hold the victim’s hip to keep him from rolling, the first responder cut the victim’s pant leg, revealing what looked to be a broken leg in several spots—not protruding, and no blood that I could see.

The victim could talk, and told us his name, but couldn’t remember his birthday. I can’t imagine the amount of pain he was in as well as getting his bell rung pretty good. We were trying to keep the victim from thrashing around while he was stabilized to prevent further injury until the ambulance and local first responders arrived.

The woman helping the female victim said, “She feels okay if she doesn’t move.” The victim stayed very still.

Emergency crews arrived and I gladly relinquished my position, pointed out the areas of concern we noticed to an EMT, and got out of the way.

That’s when I noticed a woman crying...the driver of the other vehicle. Seconds later I saw my neighbor comforting her. I realized she was a new neighbor I hadn’t met yet. This was not exactly the way you would like to get introduced to someone. Another EMT came over to check on her, and was exceptionally great with comforting her and trying to calm her down, showing her some breathing exercises.

The emergency responders were fantastic. I rarely get to see them work up close like this. Typically, I see an accident through my telephoto lens, get my photos and leave the scene. They were so calm and collected and jumped right into stabilizing the victims with neck braces and back boards. They were absolute rock stars.

I stayed with the woman a bit and tried my best to comfort her and hugged her, letting her know I was there if she needed anything.

I talked to the first deputy on the scene before I left and was given the okay to go, since I didn’t see the crash happen.

I walked to the other side of the motorcycle and snapped a few pictures and that is when I noticed my hands were covered in dried blood. I headed back into town and stopped at the city hall to wash my hands and was given a disinfecting wipe for my phone and steering wheel.

And then I was off to my appointment. On my way there, I saw a helicopter land at the hospital. I could only assume it was for the motorcycle victims.

I received a few messages from concerned friends who either saw or heard about my bloody hands. I am fine. I wasn’t involved in the accident...just came upon it. I don’t know the victims, and can’t speak as to their conditions...but they were alive.

As far as that “unnamed” intersection, it’s been about a year since there was an accident there. And I know for a fact that intersection is slated for an overhaul, potentially a roundabout, sometime around 2028. Last I heard, MnDot was working to secure additional public safety funds—or something like that—for that intersection.

So something will be happening with that intersection in the near future. In the meantime, stay vigilant at that intersection and every intersection.

While I don’t know the names of those assisting at the scene before emergency crews arrived, I want to extend my sincerest appreciation to them, and especially the Dalton first responder for being there in a time of need and doing everything possible to help all involved in the accident. Also, the swift action of the local emergency crews was appreciated.