Norman — Kirsti Granger has no doubt a guardian angel was watching over her Friday morning after car ended up under a big-rig in a multiple vehicle wreck on Interstate 35. Granger walked away from the crash with minor injuries.
The crash happened about 10:15 a.m. Friday and brought traffic to a halt in the northbound lanes between Main and Robinson streets.
Granger, 20, of Norman, said she was driving her Oldsmobile Alero to class at Oklahoma City Community College when the collision happened.
“I was heading northbound on I-35 doing the speed limit,” Granger recalled as she sat in Norman Regional Hospital’s emergency department waiting for a CT scan.
The Oklahoma Highway Patrol has not released details of the crash. As a matter of policy, OHP does not routinely expedite reports on non-fatality/non-injury crashes.
Granger said she was unsure how the wreck occurred but was told a red vehicle heading south may have attempted a U-turn, setting a chain reaction into motion.
A southbound tractor-trailer rig tried to miss the red vehicle and crossed into northbound traffic.
Granger said she hit the trailer’s axle. She ducked her head down, causing the top part of her head to hit the air bag.
“There was no lane I could swerve into,” she said.
She said the semi-truck’s tire peeled the car’s roof back.
“The semi drove over the hood and the roof,” she said. “The top part of my head hit the air bag.”
When the car stopped, Granger said the first thing she did was turn the ignition off.
“I was more worried I would get hit by another car,” she said.
Granger was forced to find a way out of the wreckage that had been her car.
“I pushed out the windshield and climbed out,” she said.
Within minutes of the crash, Granger said good Samaritans were there to help. Emergency workers arrived a short time later.
Granger said she was wearing a seat belt when the crash happened. She escaped the wreck with a few bumps and bruises and possibly a broken right thumb.
EMSStat paramedics transported Granger to the hospital. She was expected to be treated and released from NRH.
Granger said she appreciated everyone who stopped and helped her after the crash.
Granger’s boyfriend, Jacob Thiem, said when Granger called and told him about the wreck, he couldn’t understand what she was trying to tell him.
“I had no idea what she was saying,” Thiem said.
He said another person grabbed the phone and told him about the situation. Thiem said he had a friend drive him to NRH where he met Granger.
Thiem said after seeing pictures of Granger’s car, he imagined her injuries would be worse than a few cuts and bruises.
“I’m surprised her legs aren’t broken,” he said.
The Oklahoma Highway Patrol said northbound interstate traffic was closed at Main Street for almost 90 minutes as crews cleaned up the scene.
Meghan McCormick 366-3539 mmccormick@normantranscript.com
