Police, emergency service workers and onlookers watched as the late model Jeep Laredo was put back on its wheels revealing the crushed roof and shattered glass it sustained in a nearly 18 foot plunge. Richard York/The Forum Newsgroup
Motorists traveling on the Jackie Robinson parkway on Saturday morning shortly before noon, say what happened there was nothing less than a miracle, after an out of control Jeep plunged through the rail and fencing of an overpass, landing on the busy roadway below.
“It was like something out of a movie,” said Kerry O’Malley-Ryan. “I know you’ve heard that before, but this was like something out of a movie.” The 34-year-old mother of three was on her way to the city to shop for her twins 5th birthday presents. “I was just looking at the road and I saw something in the corner of my vision—it was like in slow motion and it just kept getting bigger and bigger.” Fischer said she really didn’t realize what was going on until the sound of the crash not more than a hundred feet before her sent a wave of shock through her.
Cars traveling in both directions came to a screeching halt and onlookers from the top the overpass at Park Lane Square say everything was as though it were frozen down on the parkway for a couple of seconds and then there was screaming and a mad rush to help the people in the car. “It was like everyone just looked at each other in amazement,” said John Firth, a Forest Hills resident who had just crossed the street with Kelsey, his yellow Lab, for a run through the park. “No one there could believe that the car just landed on the road without hitting another car. Miraculous. Absolutely miraculous,” Firth said shaking his head.
There were two women in the late model Jeep Laredo, above the parkway on Union Turnpike when the driver apparently lost control of the vehicle. The jeep jumped the curb and tore through metal barriers careening into the air and landing on its roof about 18 feet below.
One of the women trapped in the vehicle managed to kick out the windshield glass and people rushed to help get her out of the car. Both the driver and the passenger had minor scrapes and cuts. They were both taken to the hospital for observation but there were no serious injuries sustained.
Traffic was shut down in both directions for nearly an hour. Department of Transportation (DOT) crews arrived on the scene to install temporary cement barriers and patch up the gaping hole in the fencing.
By Patricia Adams
