Dumptruck accident

Hoeman00 · May 31, 2003

Last Monday nite Dad was cleaning the hardened asphalt off the inside of the tailgate w/ bed raised up.
This was after dark and he was using on of the 'weedburner torches' to soften the asphalt plus noone knew he was out there.
A couple hours earlier he was in bed trying to get a couple of large chunks out (100#+) and couldn't move them.
I was setting in the living room watching TV and noticed some twinkling lites in mirror (red and white) so I went to door to see what was happening.
After opening door I saw emergency lites and a woman running to the house and saying someone was really hurt bad.
I grabbed boots and ran down to the truck parking area beside driveway.
I saw Dad's car there and him laying behind it w/ his boot at a 90 degree angle to his calf and lots of blood.
The neighbor is a firefighter and they heard his moans and luckily came and checked.
He had his radio and called for the squad direct.
I checked the scene and ran up to my truck and got my trauma kit and returned to cut his pants and boot off.
I'm a first responder and firefighter where I work so the training does come in handy.
Part of his jeans were pushed into the wound so the ambulance showed then and we left the piece in the there to slow down bleeding.
He had one of the chunks come out and took his foot under the tailgate, this is a 22' long dumpbed.
Compound fracture and near amputation!
He was in process of trying to crawl to his car or the house (100 yds away).
We vacuum splinted the leg and sent him to the hospital where he was transfered to a Lifeflight chopper to go to a large trauma center.
He spent 4 or so hours in surgery to reattach part of it.
He lost the front 2 tendons that lift the front of your foot and gets a 'halo' brace put on for up to 6 months.
Friday the docors said the skin isn't attaching properly so 2 more weeks in hospital and skin graphs.
He owns a small trucking company and an excavating business too, so now I have plenty of work w/ his jobs, my excavating jobs and my factory job (the boss said take what ever time I need ).
Needless to say but everyone around here is very shocked at this and I get lots of people asking what happened.

StoneHeartFarm · May 31, 2003

Sorry to hear about that. Hope he heals up okay.

Steve

MikePA · May 31, 2003

Tim, my sympathies and prayers that your dad has a complete recovery. Sounds like things will be kind of busy for you and yours for the next couple of months.

Anonymous Poster · May 31, 2003

Terribly sorry to hear of your dad's accident. Our hopes and prayers go out to you that he will make a full recovery.
DaveL

Bird · May 31, 2003

Sorry to hear that happened to you dad; I wish both of you the best for a rapid recovery.

cmsedore · May 31, 2003

Sorry to hear of the accident, my thoughts and prayers to you and your dad.

-Chris

Anonymous Poster · May 31, 2003

Horrific event for both you and your Dad to have to go through. I have a decent idea about how you must be feeling right now. Several years ago I heard a huge crash and looked out the window to see my Wife's car demolished up against a tree in our front lawn. She was struck from behind, driven across traffic, and then broadsided by another oncoming car. Luckily she escaped serious injury (although she was plagued with back and leg pain for 3 - 4 years). I am an officer on the local police department and it affected me when responding to other accidents for a long time after.

Best wishes to you and your Dad, hope he comes through it all right.

MossRoad · May 31, 2003

Wow, Tim. He's lucky your neighbor and you have some training. My thoughts are with you and yours.

David G.

Taylortractornut · Jun 1, 2003

Tim my thoughts are with you and your dad, This being spring all the paving companies are working and my freind was injured last week when the new Aluminum framless dump trailer failed, The doghouse broke and the cylinder went through it and the trailer fell, He was infront of the windrow loader and when the house broke the loader pushed the tralers tandems over the center point. The load pulled the tandem axles over the trucks tandems and the center of the be was over the truck. There was a first responder there passing but he wouldnt let my freinds co worker rake the asphault off the cab. THey finally got him back and they tokk shovels and dug out the door. My freind has a broken shoulder and both legs and a few minor burns, It totalled the new Western Star. THe only thing that kept the cab from completely mashing was the headache rack, it was bent in the webbing but the 2 uprights held good enough to break the trailers spine. THe trailers manufatcuter says it was a bad weld that coused it and are planning on settling out of court. They called me to take a truck crane to remove the wreck. I couldnt beleive they got him out alive. The dump ed can be dangerous when dad was 20 his boss and son were working on a raised dump bed and the cylinder blew out and came in on the father. Larry took the only thing around a dragline and pulled the bed off his dad which fell again the second time he pulled his dad from the frame and he later died from the injury. again you have my condolences. Taylor

hosejockey2002 · Jun 1, 2003

Hoeman- I very nearly had exactly the same thing happen to me. I had a 300 or so pound glob of asphalt stuck in the tandem I was driving at the time. Me and another guy tried to get it out- him with a weedburner torch and me with a shovel trying to pry the glob out. When the glob got hot enough, it instantly slid down the bed a million miles an hour. I got out of the way just in time. I am very sorry for your dad's accident and I hope he recovers fully. I feel very fortunate the same thing didn't happen to me. All of these big toys we play with have so many ways to kill or maim us if we let our guard for just a second.

Rick Jay · Jun 2, 2003

Sorry to hear about the accident. My thoughts and prayers for you and your family and wishes of a speedy and successful recovery for your dad.

~Rick

Hoeman00 · Jun 3, 2003

Thanks for the comments, been REAL busy 16-21 hour days so far but I finished one of his bigger jobs yesterday.
He's giving the nurses a hard time about wanting to get home but has his 5th surgery this Thursday.
They put a 'halo' brace on his leg, about 10 pins screwed into the bones and 5 SS wires go THRU his leg and ankle to imobilize it.
Gets to wear it for 8 weeks then a cast for 16 weeks.
He remembers everything that happened.
I got the filters and stuff for my 50 hour on the 35D but it's up to 65 hours and no time to do it, Sunday nite at 8pm I mowed the yard (11 days since last time) should have baled it instead.

Trev · Jun 4, 2003

Really sorry to hear about your dad, and hope things turn out okay with his recovery.

I don't quite understand what happened, though. You guys who use these trucks obviously get the idea of what went wrong, but I'm not clear on the lesson to take away from this.

A chunck of asphault was stuck in the bed, he heated it up, and it came sliding out fast and hit him? Or did something happen with the bed of the truck moving from the change of weight distribution in it?

Thanks,
Bob

Hoeman00 · Jun 18, 2003

He had tried to pry the chunks out earlier in the day and they wouldn't move.
He was cleaning the inside of tailgate w/ dumpbed in air.
The chunks came out of the front of bed while he was heating the tailgate and the weed burner torches make lots of noise so he didn't hear it coming til too late.
He got out of hospital last week.
Has a 'halo' brace on the leg, pins screwed into the bones and SS wires thru the ankle and bones too.
The tissue didn't live in the wound area so they took a large muscle out of his back to wrap around the area and 50+ staples and an 8X10" skin graph off his thigh to cover over the muscle.
I've got copies of the x-rays and the bones sure are messed up.
Doctors are saying 2 months in halo and 4 more months in cast.
So no dozer driving for him.

19th_VA · Jun 18, 2003

My prayers go out to you and your dad. A terrible thing I can't imagine, but at least he is alive. Wish I lived in Ohio so I could help out.

Anonymous Poster · Jun 19, 2003

Ugh. Thanks for posting that.

Your dad is in my prayers. Please keep us posted.

Hoeman00 · Jul 24, 2003

Just an update, doctors are now saying he has to wear the 'halo' till Christmas or so. and walking by next spring /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
I got him a golf cart so he can get out of the house, I live about 2.5 miles away.
I built a brace to hold his left leg up so it doesn't hurt too bad and flashing lites on it.
My brother is a deputy and told him not to be caught on the road, Dad just laughed and said "what are they going to do put me in jail?"
Next time I see him during daylite hours i'll try to get a pic of him and his ride.
The cold turkey quiting smoking and no caffiene hasn't helped either.
When I get some time I need to put in a new 200amp box and wire his new hottub up so he can use it (got it 2 weeks before accident and just got the building put up around it).
Thanks for the kind words.

Bird · Jul 24, 2003

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Dad just laughed and said "what are they going to do put me in jail?"
)</font>

Glad to hear he's doing well enough to keep his sense of humor. Hope all goes well for him.