Darrell Krushelnicki = The Hummer Hero
#1
09-08-2012, 01:15 PM
Darrell Krushelnicki = The Hummer Hero
This guy definitely deserves credit!
Kudos to Darrell Krushelnicki...who is also now being proclaimed the Hummer Hero on FB!
Sept. 06, 2012
Two Edmonton teens are thanking a man who they say saved their lives when he put his vehicle between them and an alleged distracted driver at an intersection.
"If it wasn't for that guy, I'm pretty sure that I would be dead," said Janice Marett.
Marett, 15, was crossing the street at a crosswalk just outside the Bonnie Doon Shopping Centre with her friend, Chase Feduik, as well as her boyfriend and Feduik’s young cousin.
The four started to cross after traffic stopped for them. They didn't notice that a silver Pontiac, whose driver police say was using a cellphone, wasn't stopping.
Darrell Krushelnicki, who was getting ready to pull out of the mall parking lot, did see the car. He drove his Hummer forward, deliberately smashing it into the Pontiac.
The teens say both vehicles stopped feet away from them.
"We didn't even know it was happening and we heard a big smash, and there was a Black hummer with a grey car … you could hear the debris from the Hummer," Feduik said.
The four ran onto the sidewalk and escaped uninjured. Marett says it took a while before the shock of the situation wore off.
"It was shocking. It's kind of hard to explain how to feel, because it felt like you were already dead. When you come back and realize that you're still alive, it's amazing," she said.
Teen calls driver 'a true hero'
Neither of the drivers were injured. Police have charged a 32-year-old man with dangerous driving.
Krushelnicki was humble about his role in preventing the accident, but Marett calls him "a true hero."
"He could have died if it hit the wrong way. He risked his life for four kids he didn't even know. It's amazing."
On Thursday, Krushelnicki said his vehicle is now in the body shop and he's not sure if it will be salvageable. In a statement emailed to CBC News, his insurance company said it would not be holding Krushelnicki liable for the crash.
"We appreciate that thanks to Darrell's quick response, four children were unharmed last week while crossing a pedestrian crosswalk. Because of these actions, Darrell will not be charged with an at-fault accident and we will also waive his deductible," a spokesperson for Intact Insurance wrote.
Kudos to Darrell Krushelnicki...who is also now being proclaimed the Hummer Hero on FB!
Police praise man who drove Hummer into car speeding toward kids in crosswalk
This is the damaged Hummer belonging to Darrell Krushelnicki as it awaits repairs in Edmonton on Sept. 5, 2012. Krushelnicki drove his Hummer into the path of a speeding car to prevent the driver of an oncoming car from hitting four children in a crosswalk.
Photograph by: Bruce Edwards , Edmonton Journal
This is the damaged Hummer belonging to Darrell Krushelnicki as it awaits repairs in Edmonton on Sept. 5, 2012. Krushelnicki drove his Hummer into the path of a speeding car to prevent the driver of an oncoming car from hitting four children in a crosswalk.
Photograph by: Bruce Edwards , Edmonton Journal
Sept. 06, 2012
EDMONTON - Darrell Krushelnicki didn’t have much time to think before he jammed down on the gas pedal and drove his Hummer into the path of a speeding car.
He was in Edmonton visiting his parents for the weekend and had just dropped off his girlfriend at the Bonnie Doon Mall on Friday afternoon. As he was leaving the parking lot at 84th Avenue and 83rd Street, he spotted a silver Pontiac careening toward four children in a crosswalk.
“You just had that feeling where you knew something bad was going to happen. I had to get in front of him,” Krushelnicki, 46, said Tuesday by phone from northeastern B.C., where he works for an energy company.
Krushelnicki was waiting to turn left at the intersection, so he pulled up a bit further, hoping the man driving the Pontiac would notice him or the other vehicles stopped at the crosswalk.
The driver didn’t.
Krushelnicki said it looked like the man was distracted by a cellphone.
“He didn’t have any attention to the crosswalk and the kids,” Krushelnicki said. “I was quite sure he was going to hit them.”
Instead, Krushelnicki hit the gas, putting his 2006 Hummer H3 between the Pontiac and the kids.
“It was just a reaction.”
After the crash, Krushelnicki immediately checked on the crossing kids, making sure none were injured by flying debris. He asked them to wait on the lawn of a nearby church before he checked on the driver of the Pontiac, who appeared dazed but otherwise fine.
Police responded to the crash at 4:25 p.m., police spokesman Scott Pattison said Tuesday. Witnesses told traffic investigators that the driver of a 2007 Pontiac G5 was talking on his cellphone while speeding north on 83rd Street from 82nd Avenue, toward the crosswalk.
The Pontiac was going faster than 80 km/h, Pattison said. When a crosswalk’s lights are flashing the maximum speed allowed is 30 km/h.
Pattison said Krushelnicki’s actions played a significant role in preventing a potentially fatal collision.
“He did a very valiant thing. Obviously police don’t recommend people do those sorts of things that put their own lives in jeopardy, but certainly, we could have been talking about a very different story today that involved, potentially, the serious injury or death of four children between the ages of three and 16,” Pattison said.
John Troy Heitzman, 23, faces one count of dangerous driving. Police used the incident to remind motorists to use caution at crosswalks as students return to school. It also highlights the potential dangers of distracted driving, Pattison said. Since the province’s new legislation was introduced last September, city police have issued 3,790 distracted driving tickets, with 3,640 of those related to cellphone use, he said.
No charges will be laid against Krushelnicki, who came out of the crash with only a loose tooth and a Hummer with a mangled front end.
He said he never expected to be praised for his actions.
“I’m surprised. It’s a little bit overwhelming,” said Krushelnicki, a native of Taber.
He hasn’t begun dealing with his insurance company but said he’s thankful the children were OK.
“The best thing that could have happened, happened. Twisted metal can always be fixed.”
Read more: Police praise man who drove Hummer into car speeding toward kids in crosswalk
He was in Edmonton visiting his parents for the weekend and had just dropped off his girlfriend at the Bonnie Doon Mall on Friday afternoon. As he was leaving the parking lot at 84th Avenue and 83rd Street, he spotted a silver Pontiac careening toward four children in a crosswalk.
“You just had that feeling where you knew something bad was going to happen. I had to get in front of him,” Krushelnicki, 46, said Tuesday by phone from northeastern B.C., where he works for an energy company.
Krushelnicki was waiting to turn left at the intersection, so he pulled up a bit further, hoping the man driving the Pontiac would notice him or the other vehicles stopped at the crosswalk.
The driver didn’t.
Krushelnicki said it looked like the man was distracted by a cellphone.
“He didn’t have any attention to the crosswalk and the kids,” Krushelnicki said. “I was quite sure he was going to hit them.”
Instead, Krushelnicki hit the gas, putting his 2006 Hummer H3 between the Pontiac and the kids.
“It was just a reaction.”
After the crash, Krushelnicki immediately checked on the crossing kids, making sure none were injured by flying debris. He asked them to wait on the lawn of a nearby church before he checked on the driver of the Pontiac, who appeared dazed but otherwise fine.
Police responded to the crash at 4:25 p.m., police spokesman Scott Pattison said Tuesday. Witnesses told traffic investigators that the driver of a 2007 Pontiac G5 was talking on his cellphone while speeding north on 83rd Street from 82nd Avenue, toward the crosswalk.
The Pontiac was going faster than 80 km/h, Pattison said. When a crosswalk’s lights are flashing the maximum speed allowed is 30 km/h.
Pattison said Krushelnicki’s actions played a significant role in preventing a potentially fatal collision.
“He did a very valiant thing. Obviously police don’t recommend people do those sorts of things that put their own lives in jeopardy, but certainly, we could have been talking about a very different story today that involved, potentially, the serious injury or death of four children between the ages of three and 16,” Pattison said.
John Troy Heitzman, 23, faces one count of dangerous driving. Police used the incident to remind motorists to use caution at crosswalks as students return to school. It also highlights the potential dangers of distracted driving, Pattison said. Since the province’s new legislation was introduced last September, city police have issued 3,790 distracted driving tickets, with 3,640 of those related to cellphone use, he said.
No charges will be laid against Krushelnicki, who came out of the crash with only a loose tooth and a Hummer with a mangled front end.
He said he never expected to be praised for his actions.
“I’m surprised. It’s a little bit overwhelming,” said Krushelnicki, a native of Taber.
He hasn’t begun dealing with his insurance company but said he’s thankful the children were OK.
“The best thing that could have happened, happened. Twisted metal can always be fixed.”
Read more: Police praise man who drove Hummer into car speeding toward kids in crosswalk
Two Edmonton teens are thanking a man who they say saved their lives when he put his vehicle between them and an alleged distracted driver at an intersection.
"If it wasn't for that guy, I'm pretty sure that I would be dead," said Janice Marett.
Marett, 15, was crossing the street at a crosswalk just outside the Bonnie Doon Shopping Centre with her friend, Chase Feduik, as well as her boyfriend and Feduik’s young cousin.
The four started to cross after traffic stopped for them. They didn't notice that a silver Pontiac, whose driver police say was using a cellphone, wasn't stopping.
Darrell Krushelnicki, who was getting ready to pull out of the mall parking lot, did see the car. He drove his Hummer forward, deliberately smashing it into the Pontiac.
The teens say both vehicles stopped feet away from them.
"We didn't even know it was happening and we heard a big smash, and there was a Black hummer with a grey car … you could hear the debris from the Hummer," Feduik said.
The four ran onto the sidewalk and escaped uninjured. Marett says it took a while before the shock of the situation wore off.
"It was shocking. It's kind of hard to explain how to feel, because it felt like you were already dead. When you come back and realize that you're still alive, it's amazing," she said.
Teen calls driver 'a true hero'
Neither of the drivers were injured. Police have charged a 32-year-old man with dangerous driving.
Krushelnicki was humble about his role in preventing the accident, but Marett calls him "a true hero."
"He could have died if it hit the wrong way. He risked his life for four kids he didn't even know. It's amazing."
On Thursday, Krushelnicki said his vehicle is now in the body shop and he's not sure if it will be salvageable. In a statement emailed to CBC News, his insurance company said it would not be holding Krushelnicki liable for the crash.
"We appreciate that thanks to Darrell's quick response, four children were unharmed last week while crossing a pedestrian crosswalk. Because of these actions, Darrell will not be charged with an at-fault accident and we will also waive his deductible," a spokesperson for Intact Insurance wrote.
