Earlier this month, a professional truck driver was commended for helping crash victims during harsh winter weather.
“They hit hard. The passenger was knocked unconscious and was slumped to the left over the console and bleeding from her head and mouth.” – Steven Marcy, ABF Freight System driver
The Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) gave Steven Marcy, a driver for ABF Freight System, its Highway Angel award as a token of appreciation for stopping to help at the scene of an accident between a tractor trailer and passenger van. Marcy is from Tinley Park, Illinois and has been driving for ABF for 18 years.
Marcy was heading southbound from Indiana on his way to Nashville, Tennessee on a cold, blustery day in November 2019. Marcy said the blowing snow was limiting visibility, the road was icy, and temperatures were below zero. Already driving well under the posted speed limit, the poor visibility forced Marcy to slow to a stop. That’s when he saw a tractor trailer ahead of him, sitting across both southbound lanes of US-42 in Boswell, Indiana. The driver had lost control and a full-size passenger van had hit the side of the trailer. Marcy immediately set his brakes, turned on his flashers, and then rushed to the scene.
Marcy said the driver of the van was disoriented, and his wife was unconscious in the passenger seat. The driver of the truck came over to check on the passengers, and another motorist stopped to help and began to gather blankets to warm them.
The van had apparently bounced off the trailer and was sitting at a 45-degree angle to the truck. The right front corner post of the van was damaged and the passenger door was jammed. The windshield and right window were shattered. The driver was so disoriented, confused, concerned about his wife and angry at the other truck driver (blaming him for the accident) that he asked Marcy what number to call. Marcy had to remind him it was “911.” Marcy then worked to squeeze into the wreckage to check on the passenger.
“They hit hard,” Marcy told TCA. “The passenger was knocked unconscious and was slumped to the left over the console and bleeding from her head and mouth.”
As the woman regained consciousness she asked what had happened and said her back hurt.
“She was slumped over in a crooked position out of her seat with her seatbelt on,” Marcy recalled.
He carefully helped her sit upright and then held her in place, assuring her that help was on the way. He stayed with her, talking to her and offering her comfort until EMTs arrived, which was almost 30 minutes later. Marcy says he’s come across many accidents during his 18 years of driving for ABF and was happy he was able to help that day.
For his willingness to help, TCA presented Marcy with a certificate, patch, lapel pin and truck decals. ABF Freight System also received a certificate acknowledging its driver as a Highway Angel. Since the program’s inception in August 1997, more than 1,250 professional truck drivers have been recognized as Highway Angels for the exemplary kindness, courtesy and courage they have displayed while on the job. EpicVue sponsors TCA’s Highway Angel program.
