As 16-year-old Jaz Richards continues to recover from the injuries she suffered in a September crash, she’s left to wonder who it was that helped her in her time of need.
“I probably would not be in the condition I’m in now if he hadn’t have taken me to the hospital.”
On September 21, Richards was on her way home after spending time with friends when she failed to navigate a turn in heavy fog. Her car entered the ditch and flipped.
Her family became concerned when she missed curfew and their phone calls went unanswered. “12:30 came up and Jeremy was like ‘That’s it I’ve got to get her’,” recalled Tacy Ellingson, Richards’ mother. “He went to go look for her and called me at the stop sign telling me how foggy it was. He didn’t feel good as soon as he saw that.”
Richards managed to free herself from the overturned car and started walking along the highway in search of help. A man driving a truck spotted Richards and drove the injured girl to Chinook Regional Hospital in Lethbridge.
Ellingson received a called from the emergency room and, with a racing heart, rushed to be with her daughter. “You’re still thinking the worst because no one has told you anything.” The mother and daughter were reunited after Ellingson heard a familiar voice in the hospital. “I heard her and it was honestly the best thing I’ve ever heard in my life.”
According to the family, the medical staff were puzzled by Richards’ ability to pull herself from the vehicle, or even speak, given the severity of her injuries. Richards has been released from hospital and continues her recovery at home.
The man who drove Richards to hospital did not tell anyone his name and the family says they’ll be forever grateful to the mysterious stranger. “She’s as well as she is because of you,” said a tearful Ellingson. “If there’s anything I can do, I mean the least I could do is clean your car. I can only imagine – I saw the state Jaz was in.”
“I just want to say thank you.”
With files from CTV Lethbridge's Alison Mackinnon
