Four teenagers complain of whiplash and neck pain after spinning out on a highway this past May. Sam Wright, 16, driver of the vehicle, totaled her 2-door Saab after sideswiping another car while switching lanes.
“I guess she wasn‘t looking, but the car was right next to us.” Says Julia Korol, front seat passenger of the car.
The passengers were on their way to a Killers concert at The Rave in Wisconsin. All four passengers were new drivers, and for some it was their first time driving on the highway.
According to backseat passenger Mina Bloom, Wright tried to swerve out of the lane, but at the speed they were going it caused them to reverse into the median. The car was extremely damaged.
“It got busted up pretty bad.” Said Korol. “The wheels were crooked and the doors were jammed. We had to climb out of the windows.”
Standing on the side of the road, the passengers waited for the police to arrive. There was another car of friends ahead of them whom they planned to meet at the concert.
“Our other friends saw what happened and pulled over, obviously.” Korol said.
The police arrived and escorted the group to a nearby airport. There they waited for Wright’s father to drive the remaining distance.
Hannah Gilbert, 16, backseat passenger, stated that Wright felt horrible and was very shaken up. They could tell she felt bad, she said, but was grateful that there were no serious injuries.
“You know, you have your friends lives in your hands and you almost killed them.” Gilbert said.
Bloom stated that none of them had been on the highway with Wright before, but had no previous inclinations that she was a poor driver. The passengers of the accident express how lucky they feel to have made it in one piece. The car was completely ruined, and the outcome could have been worse.
“It wasn’t an empty highway or anything.” Said Korol. “There were other cars around, so we‘re pretty lucky we didn‘t hit anyone else.”
The group made it to the concert safely and on time. They were able to enjoy themselves despite the accident that had just taken place. Wright and her passengers rode home in the car driven by their other friends.
