I was driving home from Duncan this afternoon - my first day of really taking my new van anywhere - when I had a very, very close call. I was just puttering along, taking my time, no other vehicles in sight, when I happened to glance at the beautiful tall trees that line the road and noticed............a HUGE evergreen falling through the sky, heading for its resting place right across the road in front of my car.
Good thing the new van has good brakes, because if I'd hit them any harder my foot would have gone through the floorboards. The tree and the van stopped simultaneously, the nose of the van less than two feet from the trunk of the tree. Fortunately, the branches were sparse enough that other than a few needles in the front bumper there was no wood-meets-metal to report.
I didn't have my camera. I don't have a camera on my cell phone. So no pictures. And I discovered that I can't dial 9-1-1 from the cell - the screen just says "emergency number only; press * and # to cancel". Okay...I didn't cancel - I wanted to get hold of the police as it is a winding stretch of fairly frequently travelled road - but nothing happened. No phone ringing, no voice, just dead air. Time to phone Telus to find out why -the only reason I even carry a cell is for emergencies!
Thankfully, the next person to arrive was a volunteer firefighter who immediately called his firehall. Another guy arrived with a chainsaw, others started dragging broken boughs away, and in true community fashion we took care of all but the largest end of the trunk before any emergency crews had even arrived.
I'm used to keeping my eyes open for deer along that stretch of road - now I'll be watching for trees as well.
And that was my excitement for the day.
7 comments:
lad you (and the new van) were unscathed!
What are the chances you would take that second to look up too admire the trees.. you could of very well been killed. Your Guardian angels looking after you there Jean!
Our new cargo van was totaled only one month after we got it - when a moose jumped into the van. Our son and his dog were shook up but ok. The van and moose died. It only takes a second for the unexpected to happen. You are blessed.
Very scary for you. I'm so glad you and the van are OK.
Jean if it was near the Maple Mt. enterance may be the reason your cell didn't work. There is a short dead zone there.
Else
you ARE blessed, I fully agree with Yvette!
Did the gang believe the story when you came home and explained why you were late or were they in the van with you?
Oh my goodness, Jean! Your heart must have been doing double time once you fully realized how close you had come. I am very happy that you are so observant. Funny, with the wind today, I was also watching the trees and tree branches, both for myself and for Black Jack. One tree was down at Jericho this morning, and the causeway was littered with small branches. It was only when I arrived at school that I saw your post, and was very relieved to know that you and your beautiful new van are okay.
Okay, that's just too frightening by half! I'm glad your eyes were drawn to the tree before you became one with it. I'm glad you are none the worse for your experience.
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