This is something that you only see in Hollywood-made action-packed movies. But this time, there are no stuntmen, no stunt drivers, no director. It is real life, with real people and real heroes. The driver of a semi-truck found herself dangling over the Ohio River after a crash with a pickup truck. A perfectly synchronized work of the rescue services saved her life.
Everything started when a southbound vehicle hit a stalled car, crossed into northbound traffic, and slammed into the semi-truck. The impact knocked it through the guardrail and dangling off the George Rogers Clark Memorial Bridge that links Louisville, Kentucky, to southern Indiana, with the two rear axles up in the air and a female driver trapped inside. There was no way that she could leave the cabin hanging hundreds of feet above the water.
The rescue services arrived at the scene just three minutes after the first call to find the truck dangerously dangling over the edge of the bridge, at risk of plunging into the Ohio River at any moment and taking the driver with it.
It took the firefighters around 40 minutes to set up a rope system attached to the ladder of a firetruck extended horizontally. Rescue divers were waiting in the water below just in case things went south.
Firefighter Bryce Carden rappelled down to the cab to buckle the driver into the harness and lift her back to safety with a round of applause from those witnessing the entire rescue mission and holding their breath. She did not suffer any injuries but was taken to the nearest hospital as a precaution.
Photo: WAVE News - Louisville, KY
Specialized in high-angle rescue and with the fire department for six years, Bryce Carden told the media that the first thing she told her was to take a deep breath and follow his exact instructions.
"I wasn't nervous because I knew they had me on the top side. Once I reached her, she was super calm and collected, and helped me do what I needed to do to get her to safety," Carden recalls the afternoon of the crash and rescue mission.
The female driver is a military veteran. Carden says he has done crazy things in rescue missions before. But this one tops them all.
Phill Goller witnessed the accident. When he saw the truck dangling over the guardrail, he got out of his car and yelled down to the driver. She asked how much of her truck was still on the bridge. "I didn't want to tell her, but I told her the truth: it's bad, it's over halfway. I told her to be calm, everybody is on their way," he tried to reassure her. Then he had to make room for the rescuers to do their job.
One other person involved in the three-vehicle crash was admitted to hospital with serious injuries.
Louisville Metro Police are investigating the incident. The bridge remained closed through the afternoon and night in both directions, until a safety inspection was conducted to make sure the structure was not affected, according to the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. The bridge needed serious repair.
The semi-trailer hanging off the edge of the bridge was pulled up seven hours after the crash and was towed away. So were the other two vehicles involved in the accident that caused the dramatic scene.
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