The Crash

The incident is referred to as a "crash" rather than an "accident" per changes made by TXDOT (Texas Department of Transportation). An accident is an event that could not be avoided (a car damaged by a tree during a thunder storm). A crash (collision of two vehicles) can be avoided if the drivers are operating the vehicles in a proper manner.

Monday,

 14 December 1998

3:42:00 PM

I met the driver's education car (a 1995 Ford Taurus) on my way to meet Officer Jones at the office. Damien was stoic and lifted his hand in greeting. Sylvia Munoz was driving. She had both hands on the steering wheel and did not wave. She did have a big smile in recognition. This was Sylvia's fourth drive (rural and access roads) and she was obviously excited about this drive.  I did not see Kevin Johnson riding in the back seat behind Damien.

3:45:00 PM

Clifford Vogt started up the company's dump truck. He was leaving the worksite and returning to the truck storage area before going home for the night.

3:46:00 PM

Heather Este was driving her brother's 1992 Ford Expedition home after spending the day at a San Antonio university studying and taking semester finals. Heather planned to get a quick supper then return to campus for one more final. Earlier, Heather had stopped by a pet store and had bought several large bags of dog food.   As Heather turned onto FM 1, she used her cell phone to call her father to discuss an appropriate Christmas present for her mother.

3:48:00 PM

Cliff was now west bound on the narrow, winding, two-lane FM 2.

3:49:00 PM

Charles Franklin left his home to drive to his friend's ranch in the next county.

3:55:00 PM

Sylvia stopped the Taurus at the stop sign. She looked both directions, saw that the roadway was clear and made a left turn onto the two-lane FM 1.

3:56:00 PM

About a mile to the south, Charles made a left turn onto the two-lane FM 1. Charles was now west bound driving the speed limit of 55 mph.

3:57:00 PM

Heather ended the phone call to her father.

4:00:00 PM

High school senior Cheryl  Bauer was on her way home when she stopped at the Country Road/FM 1. Cheryl lived on a ranch just across the road.

Sylvia activated the turn signal to make a left turn and slowed to a stop at the intersection of FM 1 and Country Road. She saw a dump truck in the oncoming lane and waited for it to clear the intersection.

Shortly, Charles stopped a short distance behind the driver education car (Taurus).

Heather picked up the cell phone to call her mother.

4:01:00:00 PM

Cliff had cleared the intersection and was driving by a Ford Expedition in the oncoming lane.

Sylvia  had checked her mirrors and started her left turn.

At 70 mph, Heather started to pass on the left.

4:01:01:30 PM

CRASH.  Going 70 mph, the 8600-pound Ford Expedition slammed into the side (just behind the driver's door) of the 3858-pound Taurus. Because of the angle and the speed, the Taurus was basically standing still. The brush guard of the Ford smashed 15 inches into the cab of the Taurus. This caused the Taurus to  wrap around the front of the Ford. The front bucket seats seared off and bounced around the passenger compartment of the Taurus. The rear passenger seat buckled with the left side extending into the car's center. Both the front windshield and the rear window blew out.

Cheryl was horrified as she watched the crash and saw the smoke swirling from the Taurus's tires as it was forced to the east. The Taurus lifted off the ground and was moved a distance of 6 feet. As the right wheels returned to Earth, friction caused the Taurus to drift to the right allowing the Expedition to continue on. The Taurus rotated to the right and drifted backwards to the left.

4:02:00 PM

The Taurus came to rest in a culvert on the Northwest corner of the intersection. The car was angled 180 degrees from the point of impact.

The Expedition came to a stop on the left shoulder of the roadway.

Cheryl called her mother to report the crash.

4:03:00

Mrs. Bauer (Cheryl's mother) called 911 to report the crash.

Heather stepped out of the Expedition to look at the front of her car. She swore as she saw that the "brush guard" had been shoved back into the radiator with antifreeze spewing forth. Then Heather returned to the Expedition and lay down on the front seat.

The dog food was displaced in the back of the Expedition. The cell phone and a soft drink can lay on the floor  against the passenger door. School materials were scattered along the floor by the back seat.

Charles, Cheryl and others stopped to render aid to  the crash victims.

The Emergency Response was total chaos. One might be tempted to refer to the response as a Keystone Cops event. However, that would imply the chaos was humorous. There is nothing funny about the death of a young girl and the injuries suffered by the 2 young men in the car. This event needs to be referred to with a classic WWII term. The response was complete FUBAR.

4:14:00 PM

The crash site was 1 mile from one county line and 1000 feet from another county line.

Highway Patrol Officer Merrill Vickers received a request to investigate the crash site.

EMS from County 1 arrived at the crash site. They helped remove the passengers from the vehicle and placed them on nearby blankets. The EMS team performed their duties and started giving the patients oxygen.

4:21:00 PM

County 1 EMS received a phone call from the County 2 EMS dispatch.  EMS 1 were told to pack up their equipment and return to base because the accident had happened in County 2 and their EMS was on the way.

Fortunately, the County 1 EMS team allowed the patients to remain on the blankets breathing through the oxygen masks. They then helped Sheriff deputies direct traffic and maintain the crash site. One member  monitored the patients from a distance to assist if needed.

4:56:00 PM

County 2 EMS arrived at the site and began administering emergency aid. They also  requested an emergency helicopter from County 4.

5:06:00 PM

Officer Vickers arrived at the crash site and started the official state investigation. He noted the objects scattered about in the Expedition, the position and condition of the Taurus, and asked about any witnesses.

5:08:00 PM

The helicopter arrived and the team started the transfer of Heather, Kevin, and Damien from the crash site to the helicopter.

5:28:00 PM

Officer Vickers noted that the Expedition passenger compartment was now empty.

Lift off, and the helicopter transported the patients to the trauma units. Damien was strapped to a board. The rotor vibrations caused Damien's head to bounce on the board. These impacts caused bruising in two places on the back of his head. Over the next few weeks these bruises developed into skin ulcers.

5:40:00 PM

The trauma unit team removed Damien from the helicopter and rushed him to the Emergency Room. Their trauma unit could only take one patient so the helicopter lifted off and airlifted Heather and Kevin to a nearby military trauma unit.

5:45:00 PM

Heather and Kevin arrived at the military trauma unit and the physicians began their exam and treatment.

6:45:00 PM

Heather was released from the Emergency Room.

Kevin was admitted to the ICU.

                Injuries

Heather

                None

Kevin

                Head trauma

                Severe bruising and swelling of the left hip

                Coma

Damien

                Bruising to the right frontal lobe

                Broken neck

                Broken left collar bone

                Broken left humerus, radius, ulna, and rib cage

                Torn thoracic aorta (a two-centimeter separation still surrounded by connective tissue)

                Torn diaphragm ( a 15-centimeter tear)

                Displaced stomach (pushed up through the diaphragm)

                Displaced liver

                Ruptured spleen

                Bruised spots on the back of the head

Sylvia

                Massively fatal injuries