Two men fishing in northwestern Indiana discover a truck under a bridge and rescue efforts begin/Indiana State Police
2023.12.28 Thu posted at 12:42 JST
(CNN) The day after Christmas, two men went fishing in a mountain stream in northwestern Indiana when they spotted something shiny in the distance.
Mario Garcia and his son-in-law, Nivaldo Delatorre, were about to pull the fish out after fishing, but their curiosity got the better of them and they decided to take a look. It happened on the 26th of this month.
As I walked toward the glowing object, I found myself under a bridge over an interstate, and finally realized what it was.
It was the remains of a truck.
The two approached the driver’s door, and when Garcia reached into the car and removed the airbag, they saw something that had not been visible before. There was a man in the driver’s seat.
Garcia said she touched the man’s shoulder, thinking he was dead. “She woke up when I shook her,” she recalls.
Surprised, Garcia urged Delatorre to call for help immediately.
This was the moment the miraculous rescue began for the first time in almost a week.
The man in the driver’s seat was Matthew Ream, 27, a welder from Mishawaka, Indiana. He was stuck in his seat and had been unable to move since the 20th. The car was so deformed that I couldn’t reach my cell phone, and no matter how loud I screamed, no help came.
Rescue team carrying out rescue operations
According to state police, Reem survived by drinking rainwater for six days.
The area has been cold for the past few days, with minimum temperatures below freezing.
“It’s a miracle that he was alive in this weather,” police said, adding that Ream had serious, potentially life-threatening injuries.
Garcia said Ream said he was “almost in despair because there was no one there” before the two men found him.
As they waited for rescue, Ream thanked them many times, Garcia said, adding, “I had never seen such relief.”
When emergency services arrived, it was difficult to even get equipment to the scene under the bridge. On the afternoon of the 26th, a rescue operation was carried out with one lane of the interstate highway closed to traffic, and Reem was transported by helicopter to a hospital.
According to a crowdfunding site asking for help with treatment costs, Reem may need surgery for the broken bones and leg injuries.
Reem says she is grateful to the two people who discovered her.
According to the hospital, as of the morning of the 27th, Reem’s condition is serious.
In a statement, Reem expressed gratitude to those involved, including the discoverer and the rescue team, commenting, “No matter how dire the situation, there is light at the end of the tunnel. Sometimes in the most unexpected way.”
It is unclear how Reem’s truck fell off the road, but it is believed that it missed a guardrail, became airborne, fell into the river, and came to rest under a bridge.
Garcia (left) and his son-in-law Delatorre who found the man/WBBM
However, police said there was no report of the accident, and even if they had, police explained that the wreckage under the bridge may not have been visible. He pointed out that if Garcia and his friends hadn’t found him that day, Ream might not have survived.
Garcia said she feels lucky that her curiosity pushed them towards the truck as they were heading home. “A miracle? I don’t know,” Garcia said. I’m happy,” he commented.
“Shining object” seen while fishing in a mountain stream, the first step toward a miraculous rescue US
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2023-12-28 03:42:00
