Titan Transfer Driver survives Tornado

http://www.t-g.com/story/1824616.html



Sudden change
Swing heard the weather warnings and passed through a hailstorm -- but then, at about 2:30 p.m. Eastern time near Henryville, Ind., he could see a little bit of sunshine.
"I thought, 'Well, we're coming out of it,'" he recalled.
Suddenly, a storm hit from the right, before Swing knew what had happened his windshield popped out.
"All I could hear was the wind," he said.
Winds strike
A funnel cloud lifted his truck into the air.
According to the driver behind him, the truck flipped over 1 1/2 times, landing on its roof.
"It didn't drop me," Swing said, it just laid me down."
He was hanging from his seatbelt, upside down, in the cab. With great difficulty, he managed to free himself and climb out of the truck. It was only then he realized just how badly it had been damaged.
Scary moments

A gash to his forearm was the only injury Phillip Swing suffered after the horrifying accident.
(T-G Photo by John I. Carney)
[Click to enlarge]

"If I hadn't been wearing my seatbelt," said Swing, "it would have put me in the obituaries." Swing was later told that the tornado was an F-4.
A deputy sheriff arrived at the scene.
"He told me to get in the car," said Swing, "because there was another one coming."
They drove to a nearby overpass as baseball-sized hail hit the Indiana countryside.
















They got the truck back this week. You look at it and just shake your head.



Folks that is why you should have your seat belt on.

 

Sunday, March 11, 2012
By JOHN I. CARNEY ~ [email protected]
This is what Phillip Swing's truck looked like after having been flipped over by a tornado while traveling on Interstate 65 in Indiana.
(Submitted photo)

 

Nissan sent a nice letter I heard saying they were glad driver was OK.

Kelvin (Our safety Guru) Only posted the pic in the hallway with the disclaimer "For all of you that think seat belts suck!"