My Dad... and a WARNING! NOT that O/T...

Hey guys... some of you heard at Autorama that my dad was involved in an accident at work Saturday...

I got the call not even 10 minutes after I got to the show Saturday...



As near as we can put together,here's what happened:

He works at/runs a scrap yard... (we all know the kind of lackey employees these yards can attract, especially in Flint!)

The loader they have is a piece of crap. It's always a bitch to start. You almost always have to use ether to get it fired...

Well, the crackheads that work there tried unsuccessfully for two days to get it started... SO my dad went to show them how to get it started...

He tried to start it, and it was cranking really slow.

He says that it's too cold; they need to pre-heat the oil. (The way they've always done this in the past was to fan the oil pan with the O/A torch to heat the oil a little.)


The problem with this???

Nobody felt it necessary to let him know that in the past day and a half they've put SEVEN cans of Ether into this motor, without getting it to run.

As soon as he lights the torch, the air cleaner explodes... and he pertty much eats it.

I don't know how many of you guys know what the air cleaner looks like on one of these, but it is a BIG, HEAVY steel cylinder. (roughly 18"dia. x 24" long)


He's in BAD shape.

From the bottom of his nose, straight down to his chin, and all the way over to his ear, the skin/muscle is completely peeled back.

He has several skull fractures/breaks in the sinus area.

His jaw is broken in AT LEAST 4 places

All of the teeth on his left side are M.I A.

His windpipe is fucked up.

He has 3 broken ribs.

His right lung is moderatley bruised (most likely from hitting the ground).

His left lung is collapsed and SERIOUSLY bruised.



He's on a ventilator, he has a chest tube, he had a tracheotomy(sp?) to bypass the messed up plumbing.

It's a waiting game now....

The first night, the Dr said "He'll make it through tonight; anything further than that, I don't even want to venture a guess..."

His left lung is FUCKED. When a lung is that bruised, there is no oxygen exchange taking place... they also have to make sure that the lung doesn't start to harden.


He was conscious and talking when he arrived at the hospital (He told my mom he loved her, and not to worry about him), but they were concerned about brain damage, because he was apparently knocked out for over 20 minutes.

They have him VERY sedated, so his body can rest, and attempt to start the healing process.

Even though they told us he had NO idea of what was going on around him, he was definitely communicating with us. He would squeeze our hands or raise his eyebrows in response to questions or comments.

The nicer of the nurses also told us that he opened his eyes and she asked him some "yes or no" questions, and he was able to nod his head for the correct response to all of them, including a "negative" response to "are you in any pain?"

He wa also asked "how many fingers am I holding up, and was able to answer correctly by showing the same number of fingers.

I was there when they removed the neck collar, and the nurse said "Ok Tom, I'm just going to lift your head up so I can get this out from under you", and he lifted his head all by himself!
When we all commented on how great that was, she asked if he could wiggle his toes, and he was able to move both legs, not just toes!!!

It definitley seems to me that he's pretty "with it" especially considering he's supposedly "heavily sedated"...


BUT:
His blood pressure has been dropping, his heart rate climbing, and last report I got his temp is climbing too.

They're most likely going to induce a coma, so his body doesn't have to worry about anything other than healing that lung.



He was at Autorama with me Thursady, and I didn't get to hang out with him nearly as much as I should have; mostly due to my being exhausted from the thrash to get the car ready for the show...

He was REALLY excited that we got the '55 in there, and he was supposed to go down there with me all day today so we could hang out...

My whole family commented on how pissed he would be if I missed the show because of his health, and that he'd want me to be there...

Since we're not even allowed to talk to him or touch him at the hospital anymore, I figured I should go to try and clear my head a little, so I went for the last 1/2 of the day (Thanks for the ride Pete!)...


Sorry if I seemed out of it guys... I didn't get a lot of sleep at the hospital last night... I was trying my best to have a good time, but my mind was definitley "elsewhere"...


My brother's staying up there with my Mom tonight, so I can get my daughter off to school in the morning, and so I can try to get at least a little rest...
My fiance' was with her all day today, and made her take a pretty decent nap...



Anyway, that's what's going on so far... all because of some stupid fucking mistake, and some obvious lack of communication.

PLEASE!!! Be VERY careful whenever you're working on your shit, especially if there are other people "helping"... make sure that everybody is fully aware of what the other people are doing/have done.

Also, don't forget to hang out with your Dad as much as you can, and make sure he knows how much he means to you; because you NEVER know when some stupid shit like this might mess things up...


Thanks for all the thoughts/prayers so far guys...
Wish us luck, we're gonna need it !

 

I already said a prayer for your dad. Good luck.

 

Truer words never spoken......
I lost my Dad a little over 16 months ago.....and think of him and miss him every day.

I will say a prayer for your Dad tonight.........

Deuce Roadster

.

 

Holy fuck man....... I don't know what to say other than I hope all is well soon. Damn...

 

My families thoughts and prayers are with your father. Best to him...

 

Jesus holmes...I'm at a lost for words...Thank God he is still alive..I cant imagine how you feel....Your father and family are in my prayers brother....

The car looked great!

Take care of yourself and keep your head up holmes!!

 

Safety warnings are NEVER off topic. Sorry to hear about your Dad. Keep the faith.

 

Im new here, and dont know most of you, but my prayers are with your father and family. Its too often that I dont think to appreciate the time I spend with family. I am originally from Detroit, and if there is anything I can do from out here, please dont hesitate to pm me.

 

[As I read this post,I was thinking about the times I sat beside my dad in the hospital while he slowly recovered from cancer surgery at the age of 70.He fooled them all,and lived another 16 years,and it wasn't the cancer that got him.I feel for you and your family,and will say a prayer tonight.I hope your dad bounces back quickly...

 

Sorry to hear about you dad. I wish you and your family the best of luck. Scott

 

Our prayers are with your dad and your family.
Good luck and God bless.

 

The others should never have let him near it with a torch, never any good to hear of accidents like this that should never have happened with a little communication. Hoping for the best for your Dad and your family.

 

Steve, Just caught this thread as I was about to call it a night. Keep us posted as to what's going on. If there is anything I can do, just ask. As far as prayer is concerned you've got it, for your Dad, your Mom, you and the rest of your family. If you would PM me your cell no. and I can keep in touch that way to if you don't mind.

Frank

 

Far out thats really bad hang in there where thinking of you

 

I have no words that fully express how much I hope your father recovers. That he recovers well, and recovers as quickly as possible.

As far as the others, I hope they got hurt in the blast... yeah, I'm mean, but 7 cans of ether an no one told your dad? they should be where he is, not him.

 

MAn Sorry to hear that. Makes me think I need to get home a bit more often also. .

Hope he is ok.

Prayers be with him

 

God bless you and yours' my prayers for your father.
Mac

 

I'll be thinking of you guys. Sounds like he's a fighter from the way you described it.

 

..........man! That is so wrong!! No one should get that beat up due to someone else's carelessness. Thank God your Pop is as tough as he is. He and your family will be in our prayers..........hang in there.

 

Look after yourself there...we're thinking of you, and all the best wishes in the world for you.

Cheers

maiki

 

I've seen a picture of a soldier with the same kind of injury, Dumb ass bit down on a blasting cap while setting a charge in training blowing off his face to just blow his eyes. This dude lived through the injury and after much reconstuctive surgery is doing quite well.

Sounds like your Dad is a strong willed man and will pull through this. My prayers are with ya from the big sandbox

Zeke

 

You have my prayers for your pop.
I hope he gets through this.

 

So sorry to read this. Sounds like he is one tough guy, our prayers are with him and his family.

 

thoughts are with you buddy

 

So sorry to hear this....keep the faith, he sounds like a real fighter. Prayers coming from Midland.

 

sayin that his dad is "tough" is like saying the ocean is "a little damp"

a bruised lung AND a collasped lung and he as still awake and talking? thats a new definition for the word tough....

hes in my prayers, keep us updated

 

Don't know Tom that well but he's a really cool guy. Smart as hell, too. I'm a firm believer in 'When it's time, it's time.
Obviously, there's still plans for him here.

Steve, if ya need ANYTHING, don't hesitate. We're here for ya.

 

I am adding to your Dad and you to my prayer list. I'm sorry that it had to happen.

 

Steve's Dad is one hell of a great guy and it truly saddens me to hear about his bad luck. As you already know Steve, my prayers and thought's are with you and your family at this time. Stay strong bro......Tom's one tough man!!