The Biggest Rollercoaster of My Life

You know, I have never been as close to death as I was yesterday. I have never seen my name plastered on so many media outlets and other members of the press. I’ve been shooting news for well over two years now, and I have to say, it’s a strange feeling to BE the news. One just has to google “KEYT news van accident” and all the bits and pieces of information tell the story of what happened yesterday, but what a better source of information than coming from me, the driver and cameraman.
On April 26, 2010 at about 2:45pm, KEYT senior reporter John Palminteri and I are driving back to our station in Santa Barbara from Arroyo Grande on Southbound HWY 101. We had just finished shooting our last story of the day. Driving at about 70 MPH on the fast lane and everything is fine. Suddenly, the van begins to go out of control as John calls out to me that a tire had just blown out. I try to maintain control of the News Van. I look at the passenger’s side mirror and I see chunks of tire flying out onto the highway. The force and weight placed on that shredded tire was too great for my efforts to maintain control. The van swerves left. It begins to tilt sideways. I turn to John and yell out “John hold on! hold on!” The van makes contact with the ground and suddenly I cannot tell the sky from the ground. My eyes are open. As we roll I turn to John and see he is safely fastened onto his seat as am I. I close my eyes for a brief moment. Everything stops.
The system’s alarm goes off. “Beep! Beep!” I open my eyes. I realize the van in on its side because John is below me still fastened onto his chair as am I. I turn to John yelling out “John are you okay!” John responds “Yes! We need to get out of here. Take out your cell phone and call for help!” As I struggle to get my cell phone out of my left pocket, a man approaches the windshield in a hurry and asks how he can help and what we need. I yell back “Call for help!” The man informs me medics are on their way. The glass on my driver’s side window is missing. Windshield is shattered but still in its frame. I kick the windshield outwards hoping that it will create an opening for John and I to exit. I don’t see an exit. I am careful to not step on John and I place a foot beside him as I release my belt buckle. I am standing upright. The Driver’s side window directly above my head. I begin to climb for what it seems to be an eternity. With all my strength I manage to climb out of the window. My right leg is stuck. I feel John’s hands grasp my leg and push up. I thrust up. Fresh air.
KEYT VAN ACCIDENT  
I’m on top of the van and I climb down into the arms of passer-bys. They sit me on the grassy ground. John joins me moments later. I take out the company’s cell phone and begin to dial the newsroom. I hand the phone to John and he informs the newsroom of our situation. A few people tend to him. I begin to ask if John is alright. I want John safe. Worrying about myself is the last thing on my mind. A woman approaches me and informs me that I look in worse shape than John. Blood all over my face and hands. I ask if they see any significant cuts on my face. Some think I am bleeding from the nose, others from the side of my head. Later it is discovered I suffered a minor superficial cut on my lower left cheek. Nothing in my body hurts or aches. The woman administers a few tests to make sure I do not have a concussion. I don’t. Paramedics arrive and administer John and I some tests to see if our bodies are fine or not. My media pager goes off. I ask a paramedic if another media outlet is on scene. He informs me KSBY has just arrived. 
A CHP officer approaches me and begins to ask me questions about the accident. I answer them all as best as I can and a fireman approaches me also to ask me if there is any hazardous material inside the van that could be dangerous and could produce radiation. I tell him “no,” but that he should call our station’s engineers. He says he is in contact with KCOY’s engineers.
The paramedics want to take John and I to the hospital and proceed to put us in a gurney. I over hear the paramedics say a camera is right infront of us. I ask “where is the camera?”, “by your feet.” I give a thumbs up in hopes that whoever was shooting captured it. John and I are loaded into the ambulance and taken to Marian Medical Center in Santa Maria. En route, the paramedic takes our blood pressure. We arrive at the hospital and they put John and I in separate rooms. Nurses and others come to me and begin to ask me questions. I am given an opportunity to call my parents and let them know I am alright. I am visited by KCOY’s news director, John, on behalf of my boss. John brings a nice woman with him. I wish I could recall her name. I am informed that KEYT’s chief photographer and General Manager are en route to Santa Maria. John and I are finally released from the hospital. No CAT scans for me, just a careful cleaning of my wounds in one of their restrooms. KCOY’s news director and his friend stay with John and I until KEYT’s GM arrives, and we can safely go to the junkyard to pick up important accessories from the destroyed News Van and finally head home.
This was the biggest rollercoaster of my life as of yet, and I hope it never happens again. I got lucky this time, next time I may not be so lucky. I really feel that perhaps there was a guardian angel watching over John and I that day. Witnesses told us the van lifted off the ground and rolled over twice. Clearly, this accident was an extremely serious one, and I feel blessed and fortunate to walk away with only minor superficial cuts and abrasions. I have to confess, I did not know what to write as my first entry of this blog, but upon seeing all the media coverage and attention this story received, I decided that it was only fair to “hear it from the horse’s mouth.”