Victor Williams, a freshman interested in economics and international relations, shares his accident story and the moments that followed at New Student Orientation.
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Victor Williams never imagined that first tour of Morgantown would be from inside of an ambulance, but that’s exactly what happened after his family’s car was struck by a motorcycle on their way to orientation.
After arriving from Rochester, New York, Williams’ sister was driving along West Run Road, about to make a turn when a motorcycle slammed into the passenger side of her rented Chevy Equinox.
“I remember looking at the guy in the eyes—he was really close to me,” Williams, now a freshman, said. “Luckily I didn’t get hit that bad, but it hit my dad and he flew to the other side of the car.”
Using skills he learned in a class he took in high school, Williams got out and checked on the motorcyclist who wasn’t responding or moving. Thankfully, Williams said, an off-duty EMT got out of his vehicle and helped the motorcyclist so Williams could help his dad.
To make matters worse, when Williams called 9-1-1 for help, they hung up on him after he vaguely described his initial location as “outside of West Virginia University.” The EMT at the scene was able to call the police and get two ambulances to the scene.
His dad had been hit the hardest and couldn’t feel his legs after the impact. Williams was frightened. A nurse, who also happened to be at the scene of the accident, helped calm down Williams’ sister.
“My sister was a lot worse off than I was,” he said. “She was really out of it, and (the nurse) helped calm her down a lot.”
Then, seeing the car filled with all of Williams’ belongings for freshman move-in, the nurse moved all his things to her car.
Unwilling to leave his father, Williams hopped in the passenger seat of the ambulance, and the driver gave him his first official tour of Morgantown on their way to Ruby Memorial Hospital…
