A Tallahassee, Fla., man suffered a broken leg Monday after jumping off a bridge to protect himself from being hit by a semi-truck.
In an attempt to rescue his wife and four children from the crashed vehicle, a man jumped off the Little River Bridge at Mile 185 to escape a semi-truck, the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) said. According to WTXL ABC 27.
A 39-year-old man was traveling in his work truck when his wife’s car lost control and collided with another car on a rainy morning (Tallahassee Democrat) reported.
FHP said the man fell 40 feet (about 40 meters) when he jumped, WTXL news agency reported. His company told reporters that the man suffered a broken leg. Meanwhile, his wife and four children (all daughters) sustained minor injuries in the six-vehicle collision. (Related: Video shows toddler in diapers in the middle of highway after being ejected from ‘major’ car crash)
FHP Captain Jason King told the magazine that the man’s decision to jump was wise given the circumstances.
“It’s definitely the best decision at this point,” King said. “This gives us a safety message. But as I said earlier, we’re going to make decisions to protect our families. But we also hope that crashes will subside to some extent. We’re trying to encourage everyone to stay in their cars until the dust settles, as they say.
America’s fastest growing state, According to According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Florida’s traffic fatality rate was approximately 15.9 per 100,000 people in 2022. According to To the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), a non-profit traffic safety research center: Approximately 3,530 road users died in this accident.
In August, nine people were killed when a car overturned in a Florida canal, Palm Beach County officials said. Authorities suspected the driver improperly navigated a left-hand curve. Officials said five of the dead were minors and one resident survived. In May, a bus carrying farm workers crashed in Florida, killing eight people and injuring 45 others, officials said. The bus was carrying “approximately 53 farm workers,” according to FHP.
