Filling in the gap

Below is what I learned lately from Sandy about what happened after the accident.

I was the driver. Having left Nelson Bay, the small shack community, we drove for about 30 minutes. There was a slip 打滑. The car fish tailed to the right and I corrected it to the left and then it started to roll over.   

Some believed that the van rolled over twice. We were lucky that it landed on four wheels and stopped. All passengers in the back were conscious 清醒. Recovered from the shock, they checked each other and us in the front seats to make sure everyone was okay.  

Gilbert had pain in his left shoulder and had difficulty moving it.  He was also hit on his head and the area close to the right eye was swollen 肿. Grace twisted 扭伤 her neck but she said she was okay. Sandy had some pain in her left shoulder but was alright. There was silence in the front seats and Sandy saw me collapsed onto the passenger seat. She moved to the front and found me unconscious. She yelled: “Cecilia, wake up, wake up!” At this point, Rebecca regained her consciousness. Not sure whether I was alive, they were very worried. After five to ten minutes, I managed to make some noises. I told them I felt dizzy and wanted to sit upright. They first checked if I had any broken bones.  Then they gingerly erected me and laid me flat on the driver seat. While holding my head, Sandy saw blood on her hands and on the passenger seat. My head was bleeding and it stopped later. They then covered me with all the jackets they had as I felt cold.

The sliding door of the van was jammed 卡住了 and all glasses shattered 粉碎.  Backpacks, bags and things inside the car were scattered 遍布 around in the field.  The only way they could get out was through the windows.  Grace and Gilbert climbed out to get to the backpacks for the mobile phones. As expected, there was no coverage.

Sandy once heard about my story of the 4 wheel drive bogged down on a remote muddy track with no mobile phone signal and I had to walk for hours to look for a house or a passing by car for help. Grace and Rebecca stayed with me. Sandy and Gilbert grabbed their backpacks and off they went, wondering if they could reach Nelson Bay in two hours and if I could last that long.

We struck gold. Just when they started moving, a few cars were coming in the opposite direction towards Arthur River. They were a group of six guys on a quad bike (or ATV, all terrain vehicle) trip. One of them is a SES (State Emergency Service) volunteer and has first aid knowledge. None of their mobile phones had signal either. Being experienced outdoor enthusiasts, one of them climbed to the roof of their car and managed to catch a signal on higher ground.  They called the ambulance and police. They also helped pick up the scattered stuff and heaped them up in one spot.

While waiting for the ambulance, my friends kept talking to me to make sure I would not fall asleep.  Despite the pain and feeling dizzy and cold, I remained conscious and was able to tell Sandy Mark’s mobile number.   

After about 45 minutes, the ambulance arrived and the paramedics 救护人员 performed a number of checks and tests on me. It was a big relief to everyone when they said that I would be fine. Constrained 受限制 by the jammed door and the confined 局促 space inside, the paramedics could not remove me from the van. They had to call an “action” team to cut open the roof and that took another 45 minutes for the team to come. Meanwhile, the paramedics kept trying to extract me and eventually they managed.  

The paramedics also assessed the injuries of the others and they put a neck brace on Grace and made her lie down in the ambulance.

Grace and I were transported by the ambulances while Sandy, Gilbert and Rebecca travelled in the police car.

Mark got a phone call from Sandy while the ambulances were on the way to the accident scene.  He was at work which was 4.5 hours away. Not knowing how serious my condition was and where the ambulance would take me to, he got into the car and drove in the direction of Smithton.   Half way, he got a phone call from the police woman who arrived at the scene. The police car and the ambulances would all went to the Smithton Hospital.  She told him it was not my fault.  She almost lost control too when she got there.

At the Smithton Hospital, Mark met Sandy, Gilbert and Rebecca who were all basically okay. Then he learned that the ambulances had gone directly to Burnie rather as there were no x-ray capabilities at the Smithton Hospital.  So off he went again chasing our ambulances and followed them all the way to the hospital in Burnie.

At the Burnie hospital, the A&E 急诊室 doctor told Mark that all my injuries were fixable.  He recommended 建议 to fly Grace and me to the Royal Hobart Hospital for more comprehensive care. The accident happened at about 10am. By the time, we got to the Burnie hospital, it was 3:30pm. When my condition stabilised, we were flown to Hobart at 8:30pm.  

Knowing that Grace and I were in good hands, Mark drove to Smithton to meet Sandy, Gilbert and Rebecca, where they spent a night in a motel.  They were happy to see him as they got updates of our conditions.  Mark was calm and maintained his sense of humour which helped them relax.  They were kind to him by offering him the nice bed and they slept on bunk beds.


(This photo was taken in the car yard in Smithton right after the accident.)

Friends visiting me at the hospital thought I was turning into a bend. No, the road is straight and it is a flat country there. My friends travelling with me confirmed this; my memory has not failed me.  The accident happened near Couta Rocks.

According to Mark (my husband), there were heavy rainfalls a few days before (he checked the Bureau of Meterology afterwards). Loose sands were washed to the edge of the gravel road and filled the potholes. The day we were there was a good sunny day and it was impossible to tell which part of the road was solid or loose. When the car got there, the bank of the road gave in.

When Mark drives on a gravel road, he tends to drive in the centre (or the crown) of the road (straddle across both lanes). Now I understand why.

Various friends gave me different advice. One said he never drives on any gravel road. One said on a gravel road, she drives at 40kmh max. One said as long as it is safe to do so, let the car skid and stop by its own. Very often, engaging the brake is even more dangerous in such situations. As I have short term amnesia 失臆, I cannot tell if I had stepped on the brake.