Looking at the photo, it's hard to imagine how there was any survivable space in this car. In an accident Tuesday morning on the Skagit River bridge in Mount Vernon, Wash., north of Seattle, a tractor-trailer struck this car from behind, then climbed up over it. The 46-year-old woman driving the car not only survived this ordeal, she received only minor injuries.
But the wreck was even more brutal than it appears. Washington State Patrol troopers told The Seattle Times that the woman's car was following a semi that slowed down for traffic. She slowed down as well — then the truck behind her plowed into her car, shoved it into the back of the first truck, and folded the back of the car up over and onto itself. With the truck on top it.
Here's another WSP photo showing the wreckage from a different angle:
The car was a 2015 Nissan Altima, says patrol public information officer Trooper Rocky Oliphant. Based on the photos, it would've been hard to conclude that on our own.
There’s really not a word to describe this collision. Miraculously believed to be minor injuries. The car was struck from behind, folded the car in half, and semi came to rest on top of the car. In my 14 year career, I have never seen anything like it. https://t.co/iUsSNIhHYV pic.twitter.com/EPGI70s3Um
— Trooper Rocky Oliphant (@wspd7pio) November 16, 2021
Troopers stopped traffic in both directions, because movement on the bridge was causing the truck to shake — while the Altima driver was still trapped. When a wrecker lifted the truck off the car, the woman was able to climb out on her own. She reported feeling only minor chest and head pain, Oliphant said, and was taken to a hospital.
Oliphant said the truck driver was cited for "following too closely." That's a $189 fine.
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