WOMAN, 22, WALKS
A MILE AFTER TRUCK CRASHES INTO SWAMP; NO ONE INITIALLY STOPPED TO HELP, FATHER SAYS. BUT A LADY FINALLY STOPPED AND HELPED HER
MONTCALM COUNTY, Mi -- A 22-year-old Greenville woman
who managed to crawl out of a pickup truck that flipped upside down into a
swamp had to walk a mile, soaking wet, to find help because no one would stop
to assist her, the woman's father said.
Darian Newman, 22, had been a passenger in a 1995 Ford
Ranger driven by a male friend Wednesday morning, Jan. 14. The two were
traveling on Grow Road, south of Carson City Road (M-57) in Fairplain Township
when the driver lost control
on snow-covered pavement, police said.
The pickup veered off the left side of the road, rolled down an embankment and landed on its roof after breaking through icy swamp water.
The pickup veered off the left side of the road, rolled down an embankment and landed on its roof after breaking through icy swamp water.
"The next thing she knew, water was rushing
in," John Newman said of his daughter, Darian Newman.
The young woman managed to crawl through an open door in
the truck's cab as it filled with icy water. She found her 33-year-old friend
face-down in the snow nearby and realized he was badly hurt, John Newman said.
"She told him she had to leave him to go get
help," the father said, recalling how his daughter told him she could only
tell her friend to "hold on."
"She walked almost a mile to M-57. No one would
stop for her," John Newman said. "The adrenaline, I guess, was the
only thing that kept her going."
No one would stop for her. The adrenaline, I guess, was
the only thing that kept her going - John Newman, victim's father
Finally, an elderly woman saw Darian Newman and stopped.
She took her back to the scene and Darian was soon able to call 911 to alert
dispatchers to the emergency.
John Newman learned of the crash sometime later and met
with his daughter, who has been staying by her friend's side at Spectrum Health
Butterworth Hospital.
Darian Newman suffered only a bump to the head and other
minor cuts.
Her friend, whom police have not identified, was flown
to the Grand Rapids hospital to be treated for a brain injury and a broken
back, John Newman said.
The injured driver underwent surgery Wednesday night,
Newman was told.
He learned his daughter and her friend had encountered
what she described as "black ice" on the road they had been
traveling.
He's so thankful now simply to know she is safe, but he
also feels the weight of what a dangerous situation it was -- how fragile life
can be, he said.
"I've tried to teach my kids — Pay attention, look
around, see what's happening. Think, then react," John Newman said. He
recalls words spoken to his daughter later. "See now, see how fast life
can change in a single second?"